Let Me Go
by SheWhomLaughsLast
Summary: Sequel to I Can't Stay: With the war approaching, the Champion's memories gone, and Harbinger AWAL, all seems lost. But, will an unexpected twist of events save the world? Or destroy it all together?
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue**

"_The love that lasts a life time is the love you would kill yourself to keep."_

I stared out at the Dal blindly, my mind clouded with thoughts of the upcoming war. It was senseless, as all war was. I couldn't see any reason to fight when the real enemy was the Guruda. The old one coming to kill us all, enslave us. It was going to take those who survived this war and do things to them I couldn't even fathom. Things that I didn't _want _to fathom. I grasped my beer and took a swig before setting it back down, the light of the setting sun illuminating the amber coloured bottle. I stared at it, glancing up only when Bo walked in.

It shocked me just how damaged Bo had become in the Fade. Just how much one of the Old had taken from her, taken from Lauren. And now that the Doctor was missing, there wasn't a lot I could do to try and help either of them. She did it to protect us, like she'd done the first time. Taking off to protect us from something she couldn't control, knowing she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she'd done something to hurt one of us again.

It wasn't until Bo turned her eyes on me that the vision hit me like a tsunami. Suddenly I was suffocating, drowning as my soul was pulled from my body and thrown off somewhere into the future.

_I didn't see anything for a long time. It was just darkness upon darkness upon darkness. But what I heard was more than I could handle. I heard the roar of fire, the whistling of projectiles and the cries of battle. The sounds that were so familiar to me and yet always seemed to terrify me. _

_I'd been in more wars than I could count, taken more lives than I'd like to remember. Shellshock was common for people in my position, often experiencing bouts of uncontrollable shaking, emotional trauma, spontaneous fear at the mere sight of a uniform. And I had that for a while. On occasion, my hands would tremble violently for several minutes at a time, I would wake in the dead of night and scramble under the bed, convinced it wasn't safe to sleep next to my own husband. But slowly, after a century or two, the psychological affects diminished. I gained back control of my body and went on to fight in the wars to come. I learned to understand the ways to turn the war into something that was a part of me._

_But as I stood there in complete darkness, it felt as though I'd never been in a war in my life. In the darkness of nowhere, I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. I just looked around, desperate for light, for grounding. _

_And suddenly, my eyes opened. _

_The grass was cold and wet beneath my body as I lay face down in the battle field. It was silent now, all partakers in the war now on the ground as I was, some lifeless, others slowly creeping towards death. I felt the blood trickle out of my mouth as my throat filled with it. I coughed and sputtered, my fingers clenching the blades of deep green tightly. As I moved, I felt the painful grind of impalements in my torso, three rods pinning me to the ground, my hands and back drenched in crimson goo. But the pain seemed far away, like the aching of a healed fracture. _

_I raised my head and saw two figures standing in the clearing of bodies. They were too far to tell who they were, what they were. All I could see was that one had the other by the throat, hoisted high in the air. The victim grasped the hand holding them up tightly, while reaching behind their back with the other. _

_They said something then, but it was as if I was underwater. I couldn't make out the sentence, the noises were too distorted, too warped for me to understand, just like the reply. Then suddenly, the glint of a dagger flashed before my eyes just before it was plunged into the first figure's chest. I held my breath for an agonizing moment, as if I'd been waiting for that to happen. Expecting it, but dreading it. They stared at each other for a long time before the second person was dropped to the ground. All they could do was watch as the dying individual stumbled back, staring down at their chest. _

_Then, with a flash of light, they threw their head back, an unearthly scream exploded from their throat. The sound was so ear piercing, so powerful, that my vision exploded into colour before fading away again into nothing. _

"Amelia!" Trick's hands were on either side of my face, forcing me to look at him. I blinked a few times at him.

"Trick?"

"Amelia, what did you see?" I looked at him, then at the table in front of me. There, scribbled in black pen on the hardwood surface, was the battled field I'd seen in my mind. So dark and so destroyed, rough faces frozen in looks of complete agony. Of death.

And the figure in the centre of the field, head pointed to the sky, arms spread out, dagger jutting from its chest, standing in the beam of light. I ran my finger over the silhouette slowly.

"The end of everything."

**Ya-ho! I couldn't muster the ability to contribute to anything else I've written on FF; I got Doccubus on the brain especially after that 2x21 youtube thing I saw. Ker-squeal. There was so much fangirling that I may have peed a little. Anyway, this will (hopefully) be the final part of this story and I hope I can do it justice. I'm kind of nervous about the season finally tonight... oh well.**

**Your reviews make me shiver with antici—**


	2. Alone Together

**CHAPTER ONE**

**One Month after the Fade**

_**Dyson**_

"How much have you had?" I asked, walking in to the Dal and sitting down next to Lauren as she shot back what smelt like a glass of tequila. She let the glass touch the bar before waving on another.

"Rounding on my thirteenth." Her wings were hidden under a black trench coat, though it looked like she'd developed a large hunch back. Her brown eyes were dull, as they had been since a month ago, when her and I managed to get Bo back out of the Fade. If only we'd managed to get her out sooner…maybe things would've been different. "The bonus of being an unlovable freak," Lauren said, swallowing down the burning liquid like it was nothing. "is that I would have to drink forty-seven more of these," she looked at the empty glass "in three minutes just to get buzzed."

"How many to get drunk?"

"in and around two hundred and fifty-eight." She murmured, putting her head down on the bar. I sighed, recognizing the dead look in her eyes. "It's my fault, you know." She murmured and I shook my head, lightly grasping her forearm.

"Lauren, this, in no way, is your fault. You couldn't control what happened to her, none of us could."

"I could've fought for her, the way a mate should. I could've grabbed that horrible old woman by the collar of her blouse and made her return what she took from Bo." Her eyes now blazed with the look of someone whom had nothing but regret and grief left. Someone who had lost everything, and couldn't let anything go.

"Except," I murmured, wiping away a tear that rolled down her face. "That wasn't an old woman. It just looked like one. It could've torn you to pieces, or worse." She shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose. I watched her for a moment.

Going into the fade to bring Bo back was…gruelling, to say the least. Lauren and I had been sent in by Harbinger and had been the only thing keeping the other from going insane. It brought us closer, made us more reliant and trusting of the other. Maybe not friends, but no longer just two people who pissed each other off on a regular basis.

Since Bo came back, though, Lauren had had to stay with me in my loft. She couldn't stay with Bo for…certain reasons. It was awkward at first, like rooming with a stranger, but eventually we developed an understanding for each other. Maybe it was the animal instinct that had forced us apart at first that had allowed us to realise that we weren't a threat to each other. Maybe we'd just formed a two-person pack.

Plus, Tanner had become like a little brother to me. It was oddly refreshing to find some innocence in a world full of corruption.

Whatever the case, I wrapped one arm around her shoulders and she turned into me, allowing me to surround her in a hug. It only lasted a few seconds until she pulled away again, putting her head back on the counter. "Why are you drinking, anyway?" I asked, watching her shoot back the tequila and rest her head on her folded forearms. "I mean, you can't get drunk without draining Trick's supplies dry." The empty look returned to her eyes. She shrugged,

"I can still feel the bite of it, I need that."

"The pain?"

"At the risk of sounding depressed, yes."

"Why?"

"Reminds me that I'm still mortal. That I may possess the powers of a god, but I'm not one." That was both deep and true. Lauren's abilities had been growing every day. She theorised that it had been Harbinger on its endless quest to restore Bo that had made her strength, her speed and control grow and grow. Which made sense. It had been Harbinger who'd given her the abilities she had already.

"I could use some of that."

"hm." She said in affirmation. "I could sock you in the jaw if you'd like." I smiled and waved to Trick for a beer. "The weirdest part," Lauren murmured, propping her head up on her hand. "is that Bo looks like Bo. She smells like Bo. She even _acts _like Bo. My body and my instincts recognize her as my mate, but she's _not _Bo."

I nodded my thanks to Trick as he casted a careful glance Lauren's way; he was no doubt worried she'd have an outburst with all the emotions running through her. "Could it be just the fact that when you see her, you expect her to kiss you, to hug you, but she doesn't?" she raked her fingers through her hair carelessly.

"Maybe. I don't know. I guess I got so used to her being a part of my life that I don't know what to do without her."

The door to the Dal pushed open and in came Bo, dragging along her new pet. Some Dark Fae named Ryan or whatever. Lauren let her head hit the counter with a thud.

"Please tell me that I'm not smelling Bo right now."

"I could, but I'd be lying."

"Is she with the sleaze?"

"Yup. How'd you know?"

"I can smell his gasoline cologne from here."

"I missed my work out today," I murmured, "want me to use him as my punching bag?"

"I appreciate the thought, Dyson." She said, "But-She's hungry." She muttered, the conversation flying way off course, glancing at me. Her eyes were as red as rubies, glimmering in the dim bar lights.

"Probably not for long."

"Hey, guys." Bo said, walking over to us, Ryan tagging along behind. Her long hair was hanging free, lithe body cloaked in a red satin cocktail dress with four inch heels to top it off. Lauren didn't turn around to look, instead she reached for something in her pocket. "What's up?"

"Killing time." I said coolly, eying the Dark Fae carefully. The Loki extended his hand in a friendly manner.

"Ryan Lambert." I glanced at it before taking a swig from my beer.

"Don't Give a Damn." He pulled his hand back and Bo looked embarrassed. She refused to look at Lauren. "What're you two doing here?" Bo looked relieved at the sudden change of topic.

"Well, Ryan and I just got out of a concert happening just a few blocks down so we decided to come here for drinks."

"Before the concert, though," Ryan said, obviously unable to let a single detail of their night pass without comment. "We went to one of the most romantic restaurants in the city. Candle lit tables, violinists, the whole shebang." He smirked cockily and Lauren stood up, making a turn to leave, slipping on a pair of aviator sunglasses she had in her pocket. Ryan caught her arm gently. Lucky for him. Had he used any force, I would've killed him unless Harbinger beat me to it.

"Where're you going, Angel?" He asked, almost patronizingly. "Why don't you join us for drinks?"

"I'm going home. Now if you'll excuse me—"

"But we just got here! Hey, why are you wearing sunglasses inside? Is it that blinding in here?" he squinted, obviously mocking her. I watched her hand clench into a ball by her side.

But still, she reached up and pulled the sunglasses from her face, exposing the glittering rubies that were her eyes. Ryan nearly flinched but Bo stared at them for a long while.

Then, something weird happened.

Bo's own eyes began to glow, her chest rose and fell rapidly and I could hear her heart start to pound in her chest. Bo's body was reacting to Lauren's, against the brunette's will. Bo lifted her hand slightly, fingers clenching and unclenching as if she was torn between going to Lauren and staying where she was. I stood by, watching carefully. Watching Ryan, more specifically.

_This could be it! _I thought, looking at the two of them, Lauren's eyes analyzing the succubus, Bo obviously overwhelmed by Lauren's presence. It was the way it had been before we lost Bo in the Fade. Bo may not have remembered Lauren, but her body certainly did. She shivered as Lauren let her head slowly tilt to the side, eyes raking over Bo's body as she too began to lose herself, her eyes glowing faintly in the dimly lit tavern.

"You okay, baby cakes?" Lambert asked the succubus and she smiled goofily, like she was drunk.

"Yeah…yeah I'm fine. She's just…" Bo paused, swallowing hard as Lauren leaned against the bar, closer to the brunette. "your aura is so…amazing." Lauren shifted slightly, her wings fluttering with anticipation. Bo reached her hand out, fingers hovering from the blonde, touching something that no one else could see.

"Well then," Ryan said, rubbing his hands together like he'd come across a gold mine. "Why do the three of us retire back to my place?"

"Yeah, I'd like that." Bo said without hesitation or breaking eye contact with Lauren. The blonde, however, narrowed her eyes, pupils contracting to thin, cat-like lines, the connection with her old lover suddenly broken.

"Shall we—" he put his hand on Lauren's shoulder and, without hesitation, she grabbed the back of his head and brought his face down to meet her knee. She then proceeded to throw him on his back. It all happened almost too fast for me to see. Blood was trickling from his nose and Bo stared down at her feet in shock.

"I'd rather have my eyes gouged, you sleaze ball." Lauren snarled. Bo looked back at Lauren just as the Guardian grabbed the final shot glass of tequila from the counter and downed it easy. Everyone stared at her, hostility and fear clear in their eyes. She didn't seem to care as she looked at Bo one final time, a look I couldn't decipher in her eyes, and walked out of the Dal.

I kneeled down next to Ryan, to check she didn't break him too badly. I pushed his hands away from him face.

"Fuckin' bitch!" he panted, hands shaking. "She broke my nose! She broke my fucking nose!" I shook my head at him. It was definitely broken, but the bleeding had stopped. It was clean, he wouldn't end up disfigured.

Unfortunately.

"Consider yourself lucky, Lambert." I said, standing up as Bo helped him to his feet.

"Lucky? How is this lucky!" he asked, rage burning in his eyes as he looked at his shirt, now covered in blood. "This shirt cost five hundred bucks! This nose," he pointed to the swelling thing on his face "is priceless!" I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him to me, eye to eye. I took a second to control my anger before talking.

"You're lucky, because had she wanted to, she would've smashed her knee into your thick skull so hard it would've shattered like antique china. I've seen her take down a full grown manticore like it was a kitten. She didn't want you dead, Ryan." I spun around and slammed him against the bar.

"Dyson!" Bo cried

"But if you lay a sleazy hand on her again," I snarled in his face, watching his pupils dilate as I loomed over him. "I'll make you wish you were." And with that, I let him go and went after Lauren. The cold night air hit me hard, forcing me to pull my jacket around me tighter. I didn't have to look for the blonde too hard; she sat on the sidewalk against a clothing store just half a block away, head in her hands. I could hear her soft breaths and I sighed. I walked towards her, making sure to give her just a little bit of a heads up so she wouldn't punch me out.

Slowly, I lowered myself down beside her, careful not to sit down on her wings, now exposed from under the trench coat. I could smell the saltiness of tears mixed with the sharp scent of alcohol. We sat there for a while with only the sound of her sniffling to keep us company.

"She's gone, Dyson." She said, her voice thick with emotion. With agony. The tears rolling down her face reflected the moon light, making them look like crystals. "She's really g-gone." I wrapped one arm around her shoulders and pulled her into me. Her arms wound around my torso, head tucked under my chin as I gently pulled my fingers through her hair, trying to give her a comfort that didn't exist.

What was worse than losing someone you love? Someone you wanted to spend the rest of your life with? Having that someone walking around, not remembering that they loved you. That they had wanted to spend their life with you too. Watching them walk around with someone else. Knowing they're sharing something that had been special with someone else. Knowing that they sleep in the arms of another being.

Nothing in the human or fae world could comfort Lauren. Nothing would ever comfort her again.

"I know, Lauren, I know." Her fingers clenched in my jacket as I planted a soft kiss to the top of her head. "I know it's not much of a comfort, Doc," I whispered to her softly, "but I'm going to be here for you. I mean, I know I'm not as soft as you'd like, but pack animals aren't meant to roam alone. I need you as much as you need me." She nodded and I rested my cheek on her head.

We sat there for a long while, neither of us needed to say anything. The quiet was a refreshing change.

"What do you say we head home? Huh?" I asked her and she sat up, wiping her eyes.

"I think I need a walk, actually. But I'll meet you there, okay? Tell Tanner I owe him double for missing the bedtime story." I nodded and kissed her forehead.

"Don't be long, okay?" she nodded and we both stood up. I turned to leave and only took a couple steps before her voice stopped me.

"Dyson?" I didn't turn around, but waited. "Thanks." I smirked and continued on my way.

**Ah, a refreshing bromance. **

**Anyway, I'm going to start releasing chapters on weekly intervals starting Sunday (as to replace the TV show) so at least I have a better chance of not falling behind. Just so's ya knows.**

**If you review, I promise we can do it doggy style so we can **_**all **_**watch X-files.**


	3. Heavy in her Arms

**Inspiration came from the song "Heavy in your Arms" by Florence + the Machine in case you wanted to listen to something whilst reading.**

**Oh! By the by, I caught a small continuity error in the prologue that conflicts with future chapters, so if you want to go back and read it, I'd suggest it. It's nothing massive, but it may confuse some of the more obsessive peoples later.**

**CHAPTER TWO**

_**Lauren**_

I landed on a hill, far from the city. I needed to be alone. I needed to be far away from the noises that constantly plagued me. From all the memories. All the hurt. I'd flown for about half an hour, until I found the meadow. I let the cool grass embrace me as I sat down, pulling off my shoes and feeling the earth beneath my feet.

How did I get here? From having Bo as mine to not having her at all? To losing the one person I needed most in the world?

I picked up a pebble, feeling the earth coursing through it. My time without Bo had left me with Harbinger obsessing on becoming stronger to try and get her back. With its obsession, came more power. Almost too much for me to handle at times. Having that much power, being as strong as I was, made it hard not to use it. Like that Ryan punk.

I could've crushed his skull with a flick of my finger. I could've thrown him through a wall with a flick of my wrist. And seeing him with her, I wanted to. I could smell him on her, smell her on him, along with a musky scent I knew only too well.

The pebble hovered just above my hand.

So well it took all of my will power not to cringe to painful throb of my breaking heart. But when her eyes started to glow…

A swift chill swept through me, making me swallow hard. It was like the night at the cabin came back to me. I could feel her aura, her chi as if it had been coursing through me. I wanted her so badly it physically hurt. It took all the will power I had to control myself as wells as I had, even though I had slipped a little bit. I felt my chi stirring in my being, just waiting to give Bo what she needed, as much as she needed. I closed my eyes and took a breath, willing the night air to clear my head and sooth my heart.

When Dyson and I went into the Fade after Bo, it was the most terrifying thing of my life. Harbinger had told us the Garuda and his minions would try to use our nightmares and worst fears to cripple us, make us weak. They would try to drive us apart, try to use us against each other. It almost worked at one point too…

_We walked down yet another hallway, searching the empty rooms on either side of the corridor. It felt like we'd been in there for hours already, just wandering with no idea of a direction to head in or what to look for. Each hall looked exactly the same. Same cracked green walls, same long Persian rug, same pictures, same everything. _

"_We're going in circles." I said finally as we reached yet another identical hallway. Dyson shook his head. _

"_No, it just wants us to think that so we'll give up."_

"_Or maybe we're just going in circles."_

"_We're not going in circles!" He snapped at me. A hot flash of anger filled me and I stared the shifter straight in the eyes. _

"_Why are you even here, Dyson?" He squared up to me, staring back down at me. _

"_Because Bo is in danger, that's why." I narrowed my eyes at him. _

"_Really, Dyson? Or do you still have feelings for her?" he looked like I just flashed him, eyes as wide as dinner plates._

"_What?"_

"_You heard me." I said calmly, my anger boiling. "Do you have feelings for Bo, Dyson?"_

"_You know just as well as I do that if I had feelings for Bo still, she wouldn't have been in this cabin with you." He snarled an inch from my face. My heart stopped for one painful second as the truth in his statement hit it at full speed. "We wouldn't have lost her in the first place!"_

_It was true. Had Dyson not lost his love for Bo, she never would've chosen me. She may have never loved me. Never held me the way she did. Never kissed me. _

_So, I did the only thing I could do, I punched him clean across the face so hard my hand hurt. Unfortunately without Harbinger's physical strength, it didn't do as much damage as I'd hoped. Which was shattering his head into a thousand pieces. _

_He looked at me, raising his own hand without hesitation. I didn't try to dodge what was about to come. If he wanted a fight, I'd be more than happy to give it to him. But then he stopped, sudden clarity coming over his eyes. Within a moment, I felt my anger wash away like pulling the plug on a bathtub._

"_It's using us against each other." I murmured and he nodded, then rubbed his jaw. "Oh! God! I'm so sorry Dyson!" I said, trying to get a good look at it. He waved me off._

"_No, no, don't worry about it. Damn, though, not a bad right hook for a human." _

_We were interrupted by a scream of complete and total agony, a sound that tore through me with fangs and claws. A scream that came from a voice so familiar, I felt sick._

"_BO!" We both yelled at the same time, taking off down the hall full blast towards the sound. We hit the turn and I crashed into the wall with a solid thud. Neither of us acknowledged it as I pushed myself back and ran again, heart hammering painfully in my head. The only thought passing through my mind was that she was dead, and that I was too late. That had I not tried to pick a fight with Dyson, she would still be alive. _

_Another scream tore through the air "She's in there!" I pointed at the large door at the end of the corridor. Finally, the endless halls had ended. "Bo! Bo, we're coming! Hang on!" I yelled to her. Dyson and I charged the door at full speed, the both of us hitting it at the same time, knocking it right off its hinges and sending us both crashing to the floor. Clouds of dust rose up around us, blinding me for a deathly quiet moment. The pain I felt in that moment was immense, so much so that black dots danced in front of my eyes. My right shoulder was dislocated, if not broken, maybe a minor concussion to go with that. _

_Nevertheless, I shoved myself up, coughing as my body tried to get the air back that had been knocked out of it. I blinked a few times right as a cackle filled the air. _

_I looked up in front of me to find Bo, strapped to a chair, head bowed, tears soaking her face. _

"_Bo!" I cried, launching forwards, cupping her cheeks, trying to make her looked at me. "Bo, honey, are you okay? Sweetie, look at me, please." She didn't open her eyes, didn't even acknowledge I was there. _

"_It hurts…" she whispered just barely loud enough for me to hear. "It hu-hurts so…bad…" _

"_It's going to be okay, Bo, it'll be alright." She opened her eyes then, staring right at me, right into my soul. A sense of relief washed over me. She was here. She was fine. I was going to take her back to the physical world with me, and we would be okay._

_And then, in that perfect moment, she said something that changed my life forever._

"_Who—who are you?"_

_I didn't have time to be shocked before Dyson snarled, catching my attention. I looked up to see an elderly woman standing right behind Bo, a jar in her hands, blouse and skirt with loafers and a sick smile on her lips. "Now isn't this sweet?" she cooed and I stood up slowly, the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. "But I'm afraid you're just a tad bit late to save your lover, Dearie." I narrowed my eyes at her, feeling my pupils tighten into cat-like slits. This was no old lady. This was an Old One. It smelt of dust, of moss and fear._

_Bo's fear._

"_What did you do to her, you disgusting thing?" I demanded, fingers clenched at my sides. It tisked at me, waggling a finger at me like an impatient child._

"_Now, now, no need to be so rude!" A feral snarl tore through my throat and I feigned to the side before lunging towards her, only to be caught by Dyson mid-leap. His arm wound around my waist, holding me firm. A warning growl rumbled through his chest, telling me not to get too close. That whatever this thing was, it could kill me in a blink. Part of me screamed fight, the other part screamed don't. The old woman cackled and Bo flinched. Dyson let me go, allowing me to stand in front of the succubus._

"_What did you do to her?" He asked, eyes gone full wolf. She grinned at him like she'd won the lottery._

"_Well, you see, I was told to just kill her. To abolish her spirit, completely destroy the Champion and all she was. But, I didn't see the fun in that." She pouted for a moment "such a brilliant mind would be a shame to waste. So, I decided to do something more…clever." That sick glint returned to her eyes. "I asked myself, what would be more fun than killing Isabeau? And it came to me!" she leaned forwards slightly, as if she were about to tell us all a secret. "Ruining the lives of her loved ones while leaving her in blissful ignorance. She was always so concerned about protecting the ones she loved, so concerned about not hurting them. So, I took her memories and everything she knows." My heart hit the floor at the same time my legs gave out. The pain in my chest was so strong, I couldn't keep myself grounded in the situation. "Including her love for the Guardian." I bowed my head. It was like my world had come down around me all at once. "Even through the process, she was casting death threats to me like she'd ever be able to carry them out." _

_Before I could stop it, a low, inhuman moan passed through my lips, a sound that made Dyson stand in front of me out of animal instinct; you protect the wounded in the pack. And right then, 'wounded' didn't even begin to cover it._

"_Now see? The Harbinger isn't so big and bad when its host is a weak, pathetic human, now is it? So influenced by emotions," I looked up just to see its face contort into a look of disgust as it gazed down at me from around Dyson. "its pathetic! You're weak, just like the Champion. The human sympathiser!" _

_A new sound surprised me, I hadn't even realised it was me until everyone's eyes looked at me; a growl so powerful, my body shook. I stood slowly, feeling new energy fill my being. I stared the old woman dead in the eyes, seeing my glowing red irises reflected there. "You so called 'superior' beings think _humans _are the weak ones?" My voice held a power that I hadn't expected. "You think that because we _feel _we are weak? Look at you." I said, taking a step forwards, Dyson's hand on my waist the only thing stopping me from moving again. "You attack from the shadows, you stole Bo away from the ones who were protecting her and you tied her to a chair. You can't fight if your worthless life depended on it! The only way you can win is if your enemy is gift wrapped in a bloody chair for you to destroy!_

_So, if you think for one _second _that humans are weak, just keep this in mind." I stepped closer, despite Dyson's restraint. She looked punch-drunk as I loomed over her, my claws slowly extending of their own accord. "Humans are ruled by emotions, they force us to do things we normally wouldn't. But if my hatred for you and my love for her are all I feel right now…" I looked the tiny being up and down, beginning to smell the faintest scent of fear on her. "Imagine what I could do to you and your beloved Garuda." I lashed my hand out, slicing through the books just above the old wench's head, shredded paper falling down around her._

_To my surprise, the Old One jumped. I turned around and walked over to Bo, her face telling me she was half in, half out of consciousness. I used my claws to slice the restraints on her arms and her legs. Carefully, I slid my arms under her, lifting her from the chair. She wound her arms around my neck on blind instinct and I held her close to me. With a final look at the Old One, Dyson and I walked back out the door and into the physical world._

And here I was. Sitting in a field alone. I took a heavy breath and sighed, falling back into the soft grass. Bo was alive, true enough, but for me, she was gone. My mate had been erased like a computer file. The physical body was still here, but the memory was gone.

It felt like I was trying to swim across an ocean and her memory was like lead weights in my arms. It would be so much easier to let it go, but I couldn't. I would hold onto her memory if it killed me.

I watched the stars twinkle in the dark sky and sighed, trying to soak up the placidity while it lasted. Which wasn't long. My phone went off, the annoying ring ruining my moment. I pulled it from my pocket and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hello Lauren,"

"Hi Trick."

"I just wanted to make sure you'd be making it to the Dal tomorrow for your physical." I squeezed my eyes shut. Since coming back from the Fade, I'd been getting these physicals done every week, monitoring my physical as well as psychological changes. I understood why it had to be done, but it was still uncomfortable and a pain in the ass.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll be there. Eight o'clock, right?"

"Yes."

"See you there." I hung up the phone and dropped it beside me on the grass. I stared at the dark sky, allowing my body to relax. A flash of a shooting star passed across the blackness. I closed my eyes and made a wish.

A tear rolled down my cheek.

**Naw, poor Lauren. She's just gotten shit-kicked so many times over. Oh well, that's what you get when I chose you as the centre of my story. **

**When Lost Girl writers give Dyson back his love, say 'fae the police!' and leave a review to help me pay for the Anti-Bo/Dyson resistance movement. No offence to Wolf-boy, but Doccubus must prevail!**


	4. The Secrets She Keeps

**Hello,**

**Sorry I was gone for so long. I had a softball tournament which left me without fully functional knees ( being back catcher for four games in 24 hours is a real bitch) and then I was coaching softball and it was a crazy shit storm. And I forgot about you. So, here's a longer than usual chapter for you all so you won't kill me slowly.**

**CHAPTER THREE**

_**Bo**_

I walked into the Dal around seven forty five in the morning. It was a brilliant morning too, might I add. The warm morning sun shone through the blinds, giving the Dal a warm feel to it. I looked around the empty bar, a sense of familiarity coming over me.

I'd been here since, what everyone calls, the 'incident', but this feeling went beyond that. Like I _knew _this place, if that makes any sense. Like this place had so many memories for me, but I just didn't have those memories.

I shook my head and sat down at the bar, enjoying the warmth of the sun on my back.

Kenzi was off at her boyfriend, Nate's house listening to his band play. Which was good. I was glad for her that she found someone who made her happy. That thought, though, sent a pang of jealousy through me.

Ryan was a great guy, don't get me wrong. He was smart, funny and handsome and I did really like him. But, I just didn't know anymore. It felt like something was missing. Like, I used to think we had a connection, but, after Lauren busted his nose, things felt a little off. I didn't know if it was him or myself, which just made things worse.

I found myself quickly thinking about that weird connection I had with Lauren just moments before she dropped Ryan. I was fine until I looked at her. I just _looked _at her eyes, the ruby coloured irises, and I started to lose it. I just wanted her so, so badly in that moment that I almost forgot where I was and who I was with. I shook my head with regret. When Ryan said we should all go back to his place, I agreed. I shouldn't have. I didn't even mean to. With the feeling that was passing through me at that moment, someone could've said 'hey Bo! Why don't we go club baby seals!' and I would've said yes. It wasn't until Ryan was on the floor that I realised what he said and felt like a complete asshole. The look in the Doctor's eyes was a clear enough hint that I'd hurt her. I wanted to apologize, but, by the time I got my wits about me, she had already left. I didn't know where she was staying. I didn't know if she _wanted _me to apologize. I hung my head.

As if it weren't bad enough, Ryan spent all of last night bitching about how Lauren 'broke his fucking nose'. So, I didn't spend the night. Nor did we sleep together.

The door to the Dal opened and I looked out of instinct. There, in the morning sun, stood Lauren, her wings folded into her back, her leather jacket had been slit to allow the large limbs to sit comfortably. Her blonde hair flowed like liquid gold around her face. She pulled the sunglasses off her face, revealing the chocolate brown eyes underneath. She squinted around the room, no doubt still blinded by the sun.

I'd never seen her wings exposed before. So I took a moment to admire the rainbow sheen the black feathers had. The way the wind softly ruffled them, making her flap her wings to settle the feathers back down again. I watched as a small feather fell from the rest and to the floor, the breeze pushing it off to the side.

I didn't quite understand how she came to be like that. The Guardian. I'd seen pictures of her before, pictures where she just looked human, completely normal. And now she looked like this, like a dark angel. Mind you, I hadn't really cared until now either.

Her eyes focused on the room and then on me. Her facial features turned into a look of shock.

"Hi Lauren." I said, offering a flick of my wrist as a wave.

"Bo, hi, how are you?"

"Alright, yourself?"

"Fine. I didn't expect to see you here this early."

"Yeah." I sighed, turning back to the bar, hearing her boots clicking against the ground. "I needed to get out of the house. It's kind of empty without Kenzi running around."

"Ah," she said, sitting down next to me.

"So, what are _you_ doing here this early?" She sighed, suddenly looking exhausted.

"Physicals. Trick and Amelia want to check me out just to make sure my body is fully functional."

"Sounds boring."

"Pretty much."

A still silence passed over us. Neither of us saying a word, neither of us making a noise. It was weird, but not uncomfortably so, if that makes any sense what so ever.

"I'm sorry about Ryan." She said quietly. I looked over at her, finding her eyes trained on her hands, regret clear on her features. "I shouldn't have done that. I just…I just seem to react more than think now a days."

"It's fine, Lauren. If anything, _I _should be the one apologising. When he said we should all go back to his place, I said yes without thinking. I was just sort of all caught up in…" she looked me in the eyes then and I felt my heart pick up the pace. I looked away as a hot blush burned across my cheeks. "whatever that had been last night." She chuckled once, reaching over the counter to grab a water bottle. She twisted off the lid and took a swig. Again, I had to look away.

"All's forgiven then?"

"Yeah."

"good." Another long pause took over us, the elephant in the room now no longer hidden under apologies or small talk. So, I cleared my throat, the tension starting to suffocate us both. Without looking at the blonde, I decided to introduce said elephant.

"Lauren?"

"mmh?"

And then, I proceeded to chicken out.

"How did you, um, turn into what you are? If it's not completely rude to ask?" she smiled against the rim of the bottle.

"It's kind of a long, long story."

"I've got a long time." I encouraged. She sighed and shook her head.

"You always were impatient." With that, she stood up, circling around the bar and heading to a cupboard at the far end. "Trick documented the attack; he keeps the book in here." She bent down to shuffle through the books it held and my eyes, well, my eyes went to a region of her body that could safely classify me as pervert.

_Get your eyes off her ass, Bo. _I scolded myself, _now is _so _not the time for this._

But you couldn't blame me. Lauren was all kinds of stunning. All kinds of beautiful. Long legs, graceful curves, big brown eyes and amazing—

_Snap out of it!_

She chuckled suddenly as she stood up, book in hand. She turned around, a knowing look in her eyes. My hands flew to my mouth, realisation hitting me in the face. "Please, for the love of god, tell me you didn't hear what I think you just heard!" She put a hand on her hip.

"About what? My 'big brown eyes' or my 'amazing boobs'?" I slammed my head down on the bar, trying to hide my face in the dark wooden surface.

"Someone needs to make a law that states 'persons with mindreading abilities must wear a sign saying so AT ALL TIMES.'"

"Actually, had it been anyone else, I wouldn't have been able to hear them objectifying me." She said absently, flipping through the large book. I raised my head to look at her, noting the bemused smirk on her lips.

"Why?" she gave a simple shrug.

"I guess it's a Champion-Guardian thing."

"Has that been happening since…you know?" She shook her head, that happy smile leaving her face quickly.

"No. Just recently, only when we're in close quarters." She smacked her hand down on the page she stopped at. "Time for Lauren's History: the short hand version. Okay, so, about a year ago, I was on the run from the Ash because he wanted to keep me locked up like a zoo animal. You agreed to hide me from him. About four days afterward, this manticore—" she turned the page towards me, showing the picture of a dog-sized lion with the face of a human impaled on a bedpost. I flinched and she spun the page back to her. "was released into the house when you and Kenzi were gone. I killed it, but not before it gave me hell as well." she unzipped her jacket and unbuttoned her shirt.

I raised an eye brow._ Spontaneous strip-tease? _She gave me a look. It took me a second before I slapped myself in the forehead.

Mind reading. I should try to remember that.

Instead, she pulled apart the top of the blouse enough that I could clearly see the long lines of scar tissue running across the top of her chest. My eyes widened. "It cut me from shoulder to shoulder, hitting me with three spines in the process." She flipped the page. "But I'll save you those graphic photos. Anyway, you found me in your bathroom and told Kenzi to call for help." She turned the book towards me again. "This is how Dyson, Hale and Trick found us." I looked down at the picture.

It was a shot from behind. Me on my knees, face turned to the right, looking down at the barely conscious face of the Doctor, her head cradled in my elbow. I touched the picture gently, marveling at the emotion in my eyes. The way I was looking at her was like she was the most beautiful thing in the world. Like my own world would end if she died.

"Within the next hour or so, the gang and you would transport me to the Dal, bottom level. I would stay there for the next few weeks. Then, I'd go home with you for a night." Her eyes darkened with a bad memory.

"Did I…do something wrong that night?" her eyes snapped to again and she shook her head vigorously.

"No! No, it wasn't you." She sighed, shaking her head slower. "No, I knew it was going to be my last night alive, I could feel it and…" She looked at me, eyes begging me to understand. "and I wanted one more night with you, so I ignored it. And nearly bled out all over your bed. You brought me back to the Dal…"

She turned the book again as a hard lump settled in my throat. I looked down at the picture, seeing myself absolutely hysterical in Kenzi's arms, eyes locked on Lauren's body. Blood covered a majority of her body, some even tainted the skin on my hands and my neck. "And then Amelia did a binding ritual which fused my DNA with the manticore's so I'd be immune to the poison in the barbs." Her hand darted to her face to try and hide the tear before I saw it. She sniffled, looking away from me, eyes lined with unshed tears. "Sorry." She apologized, offering a small, forced chuckle, trying to make it seem like less of a deal than it was. "I didn't think I'd get all emotional and sentimental on you."

I just looked at her. For the first time, I _really _looked at her. She looked exhausted, as if she hadn't slept in years. Her skin was dull, cheeks slightly sunken in, as if she hadn't been eating either. _I've never seen her look so vulnerable_ _before_, I realised with a start, _she always looks so cool and collected. _ I reached across the bar and took her hand in mine, feeling the dampness of the tear on her skin.

"Are you okay?" I asked her softly, feeling the sting as my own eyes began to tear up. I knew it was a stupid question, but it had to be asked anyway. I doubted that anyone had asked _her _that since the 'incident'. Everyone's attention had been on me, I guess Lauren had slipped through the cracks on an emotional level.

She looked at me, a glimmer of something I couldn't quite recognize shone in the deep cinnamon irises. The door opened and her attention snapped to Trick and Amelia walking in. Quickly, Lauren pulled her hand from mine "I guess we're about to find out." She shut the book and dropped it down onto the lower level of the bar.

"Hello, Ladies" Trick said, grabbing a few journals from the book case. "How're you this morning?"

"Fine." Lauren said, her voice cool and collected. I looked at her, seeing the tears gone and a composed expression take over her features as she put the walls back up. A sight that I was sad to see.

"Good." I murmured, casting a knowing look at Lauren who avoided my gaze. _We're not done, Doctor. I have more questions. _She stiffened and I knew she heard me.

"Shall we?" Amelia swept her hand towards the lower level. Lauren looked at me, meeting my eyes for just a second before looking down again. She hesitated, a small smile curving her lips just before she turned away. I watched her leave, finding her fascinating as she pulled her wings into herself tighter to get through the doorway. When she disappeared from my sight completely, I looked back towards the door.

I stood up off the stool and looked around to make sure everyone was gone, trying to seem as less creepy as possible. Once I was sure I wasn't going to be sneak attacked, I walked across the room and searched around by the windows by the door. Then I saw it, the rainbow glimmer of a raven's feather that fell from Lauren's wings when she came in. I held it up to the sunlight and found myself smiling. It was so beautiful it was almost magical. I glanced back at the room Lauren and the others disappeared into before gently putting the feather in my bra, hoping to keep it safer than it would be in my pocket.

And, ignoring how that made me feel even _more _creepy, I walked out of the Dal and into the sunlight.

+/+\+

I sat on my bed, reading a book. Well, maybe not reading a book. I was _trying, _really, but failing miserably. For the billionth time in the past twelve minutes, I took the feather out from under my pillow and held it up to the fading sunlight. It was nearly seven at night.

It was ridiculous, I knew it, but I couldn't go three seconds without looking at it. It was just so stunning, the way the colours danced across the fibers was impossible to describe. I found myself smiling at I watched the reflected light.

"Did you totally steal a Lauren feather?" Kenzi asked, making me jump. I turned around, shamelessly hiding the feather behind my back.

"Nope." she leaned against a canopy post, arms crossed over her chest.

"Super creepy, dude."

I sighed, looking at the feather. "Kenzi?"

"Yeah, Succuboom-boom?" I took a second before saying anything, needing that moment just to gather myself.

"Before the incident," I started, running the soft edge of the feather between my fingers. Kenzi sat down on the bed, eyes fixed on me. She looked like a parent about to have a serious conversation with their child, wondering how much she should tell me about whatever I was asking. "What were Lauren and I like? I mean, everyone says we were together that it was a really strong relationship, but never any specifics."

"Don't you think this is something you should ask Lauren?"

"I _would _ask her, if I thought she'd tell me about it."

"Why wouldn't she?" I shrugged.

"I just don't think she wants to re-open old wounds." Kenzi nodded slowly, before taking a moment to think about what she wanted to say. Her hand patted the quilt cover, pulling my attention back to her. Her light eyes were full of understanding.

"I don't know all that much about you and Lauren. I mean, nothing knitty gritty." I nodded just a little bit sad, wishing she could tell me everything so I wouldn't have to ask Lauren. She wouldn't have wanted to say anything. When I was still trying to figure things out after I woke up, Lauren wanted to keep her distance from me. Which was understandable; I _did _scream when I first saw her. She scared me. A lot.

Until now, I was happy with blissful ignorance.

Now, after seeing what I saw in Lauren's eyes, I wanted to know what we had.

"But," Kenzi said, touching the hand that held the feather. I looked at her and could tell she was trying to figure out if she should tell me. "I do know that you ran from everything you had here to go find her when she left, and, when you woke up, she was…I've never seen someone look like that before; like their whole world had just imploded." I nodded, remembering the look Lauren had in her eyes when I touched her hand. "And I also know, despite her and my differences in the past, that she's a good person, and, if she hasn't told you about your guys' relationship of her own volition, there's a reason she's keeping her cards so close to her chest." She stood up "You'd better get ready, Bo-Bo," She murmured, stretching languidly, Trick called, said he wants us at the Dal at seven-fourty. Said it was important."

**Dyson**

I felt the heat of the fire against my bare chest, the flames reaching up towards the sky. I inhaled deeply, watching the orange wisps of energy reach towards the darkness. I took a deep breath. "Spirit," I called out, "I seek your guidance! Hear me as a descendent who needs your aid!"

"_What is it you seek, wolf?" _her voice asked me, barely above the whisper of a lover. I felt her presence and revelled in it.

"A great war is coming. Many of those who are close to me are also close to the battle."

"_The Succubus, the Blood King, the Healer, the Human, the Siren, The Shadow-Child and the Guardian, am I correct?"_

"Yes. I need to know what must be done to keep them safe from harm."

"_The things we love in life we eventually will lose, Wolf. Be it now or centuries after, all of them will vanish from the world."_

"Anything I can do to keep them here as long as possible, I will do." She was silent for a long time, as if deciding on what she should tell me and what she should keep to fate.

"_In the light of the red moon, the eagle will rise, bringing with it the soulless raven. The dove will raise arms against the shadows and lead those who know not of it against the one who threatens all. In the end, it will be the dove and the raven whom will decide the fate of all that is to come. You, Wolf, will have the final strike, the final rise against the darkness. Not all can be saved. Your choice will be one no one else can make, one to unchain a tortured soul, but made too soon, it will lead to your own demise."_

I didn't bother trying to wrap my head around the riddle. "How will I know when to strike?"

"_When you feel all is lost, when you fall on hand in knee, then is the hour of dawn." _I bowed my head to the fire, to the Wolf Spirit. _"Good Hunting, Wolf."_

"And to you, Spirit."

The fire dwindled as the Spirit left. I paused for a moment to look at my watch; eight-thirteen. Damn it, I was already late.

_Not all can be saved._

Her voice rang through my head again and I paused before shaking my head. I didn't have time to think about that now.

I was already late.


	5. Memories

**CHAPTER FOUR**

_**Amelia**_

"Hey Baby, it's me." I said when Nicolai's answering machine picked up. "I know you're probably really busy getting the pack together and read for war, but I just wanted to call and see if you were okay. I mean, there's only _so _well you can do during a war." I rested my head on my hand. "We're in hot water, Nicki." I sighed into the receiver. "I don't know how prepared we could be for this. I sent the kids back to you yesterday, they should be arriving to help out within the next two days." I looked around the Dal, waiting for the others to arrive for Trick's meeting. "I know you want me to come home and be with you and the kids before we march into battle, but I can't. I'm needed here. I've got an important part in something far bigger than just the war. Something I wish I could tell you all about. And I will, one day." I heard Trick's footsteps and wiped away the tear I felt rolling down my cheek. "Listen, I gotta go. I love you, Nicolai. I'll see you soon."

I closed my phone and put it in my back pocket, standing up as the Blood King set down a stack of books in front of me. I pushed my emotions aside, for now just trying to focus on the task at hand. I would see Nicolai again. Sooner than later, hopefully.

"This is all I found on anything relating to the Guardian." Trick sat opposite of me and I took my seat again. "If we put our heads together, we should be able to find out what its weaknesses are, where it'll be most vulnerable so we'll know where we need to fit armour." I looked at him for a moment, studying his face. He met my eyes, a perplexed look coming over his features.

"Yes?"

"Are you interested in finding the Guardian's weaknesses so we can protect it? Or so we can kill it?"

"Don't be absurd. Of _course _I want to protect its weaknesses."

"Really? Because the scent I'm getting from you right now, Trick, is the scent of fear." He closed his eyes for a moment, folding his hands on the book in front of him.

"Amelia—"

"Lauren is our best asset. The power she holds is remarkable. She stands the best chance against both the Garuda and the Old ones."

"But that power comes at a price. Even a being as old and experienced as is Harbinger, it's still susceptible to corruption. 'power corrupts, and—"

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Yes, I know that saying."

"Then why are you so blind to this?" I blinked at him, more confused by his coldness and straight to the point attitude than anything else.

"I was about to ask you the same thing. It's Lauren, Trick. Your granddaughter loved, and maybe still does love, her and yet you seem so eager to kill her." The bar tender looked at me with sad eyes. I sighed, and looked at my hands for a moment, trying to think of how to say what needed to be said without making it overly painful. "I know that the reason you're more worried about killing the Guardian is because Bo is getting her energy from it; she's drawing off of Lauren's life force even without feeding. You're worried that she'll lose herself, like Aife did." He looked away from me at the mention of his daughter's name. I kept my eyes on him. This topic was excruciating for the both of us, nevertheless, it had to be said so I could ensure he had a lucid mindset. That he wasn't impaired by his past. "Aife was my best friend, Trick, remember?"

"Of course I do." He said with a sigh, his tone telling me he'd rather not talk about his renegade child.

"Then you'll remember just how good and pure she was. She used to make me throw back the fish I caught down by the river because she didn't want them to die. That is the innocence I can see in Bo, even before her memory was taken. She's had a terrible life, sure, but so has everyone else in our little group of misfits. Dyson and his trials with self-centred mindsets, Hale with his family, your crazy human and _her _family, Lauren with the Ash and the manticore and me with my…problems." He touched my hand, sympathy clear in his eyes. "But we all have come through. Aife didn't have the support group Bo does."

"She had you." I smiled sadly.

"Clearly, I wasn't enough. Bo is luckier than her, though. She's had the love of two mates, two people who would die for her at the drop of a hat. Eef didn't have that, so she fell in love with power instead." Trick shook his head slowly. We sat in silence for a long time. Both of us now caught up in the memories of the past. Of playgrounds, of battles and treasured moments that would stay with us throughout our long existences.

"I don't want to kill Lauren." He said calmly "and perhaps I resent what she's become, but I don't want to lose Bo to the darkness I can feel running through her."

"We all have darkness inside us. All of us are capable of anything. The only thing that decides who's good and who's bad is who's willing fight their darkness and who'll give into it." He met my eyes. "We both have had our periods when we gave in. When we chose not to fight. Bo will fight until her very last breath if it's what the people she loves need." Trick sighed again, turning back to his book.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

+/+\+

"Where's Lauren and Dyson?" I asked Bo. She shrugged.

"I haven't seen Dyson at all today, I haven't seen Lauren since this morning." I sighed and sat down.

"What about Lambert and Kenzi?"

"Ryan went out of town for a business trip and Kenzi—" her brows furrowed and she looked around. "I don't actually know where Kenzi is."I nodded and a silence took over. A thought passed through my mind and I smirked.

"So…" she looked at me "what were you and Lauren talking about this morning?" she shrugged, trying too hard to be nonchalant.

"We talked about how she came to be the way she is."

"That's all?"

"Yep."

"It felt pretty tense in here for it to be just that."

"Well, it was."

"Yeah, okay." I said sarcastically. Bo narrowed her eyes at me and opened her mouth to say something when Lauren walked in, Tanner on her hip. She looked at us; Tanner dressed in his PJ's, eyes drowsy with sleep. Her features were twisted into a look of worry, a face that made me nervous to see.

I held my arms out for the boy. Lauren lowered him into my lap. "Hey, Tanner." I said as he looked at me bleary eyed. His arms wrapped around my neck, a yawn expanding his chest.

"Hi Amy." He murmured, just barely awake. I rubbed his back as he settled in against me. Lauren went to the bar. His body felt warm, warmer than it should have been. I pressed my cheek to his forehead. "He's sick." I said, holding him closer, trying to sooth his shivers.

"I know." Lauren said, coming back with a water bottle. She unscrewed the lid "I didn't want to take him out of his bed, but I couldn't leave him at home alone." She kneeled down beside us, pushing the hair from his face. "Hey, buddy," She said softly, coaxing his eyes open. "Can you drink this for me? Just a little bit?" He reached for it with a shaky hand.

"I got it." I said, taking the bottle from the blonde and holding it to Tanner's lips. His tiny hands resting over mine as I tilted the bottle for him.

Appeared from his den, a mug in his hands, the herbal smell telling me it was tea. Trick walked towards me, holding tea out. "Here, Tanner." The small boy looked over at the Bar Keep. "Drink this, it'll make you feel better." The shadow child hesitantly reached for it. I beat him to it, taking it carefully and placing it on the table so it could cool a little bit. The scent bit my nose, instantly telling me it may be a bit too bitter for Tanner to drink.

"I think I've got something I could add to it, make it a little bit sweeter." I said, looking around for someone to pass the child off to, Lauren was off behind the bar getting something and Trick had gone after her. It was only a second before Bo reached towards me. I lifted him from my lap and carefully gave him to the succubus.

"Come here, Sweetie." She said to him gently as she placed him on her lap, tucking him inside the sweater she was wearing, wrapping it around them both tightly. He snuggled his head into her neck and she rested her cheek against it, rubbing his shoulders. Lauren watched them both, a soft smile on her face as I turned to get some dried honey from my herb supplies. I poured it into the drink and stirred it gently with the spoon set on the plate. Lauren walked over to Bo and Tanner, crouching down next to them both.

"Hey." She whispered, pushing his damp hair from his face. "How you feeling?" He blinked at her drowsily. He only shook his head. She sighed. I pushed the tea over to Lauren and she nodded her thanks. "Here you go, sip it slowly, okay?" she raised the tea cup into his hands, placing her own over his to help him support it. The second the liquid entered his mouth, his face scrunched up, pulling a chuckle from everyone in the room.

"It's icky." He stated flatly. Lauren smiled a genuine smile.

"Yeah, I know it's icky. But it'll make you feel a lot better, okay? Can you drink it for me?"

"For us?" Bo chirped in, catching Lauren off guard by the look on her face. The brunette casted a quick 'is it okay?' glance her way. Lauren took a second before answering, looking a little dazed.

"Can you drink it for _us_?" he hesitated a moment, as of contemplating whether or not he should put the gross liquid in his body. Then, he nodded.

"okay." Lauren smiled, causing Bo to smile.

Okay…now I was getting confused. Happy, but confused. Since when did Bo start interacting with Lauren like that? I mean, it was a good thing, but I didn't understand how it came all out of the blue. A day ago, Lauren smashed Bo's Boytoy into her knee, and today they've got a school girl crush thing going on? What did I miss?

Lauren had lots of explaining to do later.

Dyson and Hale walked in, catching everyone's attention. "Sorry we're late," the shifter said, "it's my fault." Dyson went straight to Tanner, crouching down beside him and Bo. He pushed the hair from the boy's face with his thumb, and then ran it across his forehead almost like a father would. "Hey, Champ." He said gently, making Tanner crack an eye. "How are you feeling?" the dark haired kid held the tea out to Dyson and he winced then chuckled. "Ah. I get it. But you do need to drink it, alright?"

"I know, I know."

"We already suckered him into it." Bo said, a warm smile on her lips as she appraised the boy on her lap.

"I can see that."

I looked over at Trick as the four of them talked, catching his eye as he poured more pleasant tea into mugs. _See, Trick? _I thought _This is the support your granddaughter has. This is the kind of family she's got at her back. _He sighed with recognition and wary acceptance, understanding my message simply by the way I looked at him.

Hale took off his jacket and wrapped it around both Bo and Tanner while Lauren watched the two with warm eyes. Bo caught her gaze and held it for just a second too long before resting her head on top of Tanner's. I didn't miss the discrete hand squeeze Bo gave Lauren. I smirked and shook my head ever so slightly.

_Here we go again._

Trick came in, a platter of tea in front of him. Lauren stood back up and walked around to my side of the table, grabbing the chair next to me and sitting down. She did, however, keep a close eye on her brother as she sipped the tea.

Once everyone was seated, Trick spoke.

"As you're all well aware of, the battle for all fae and human kind is upon us. The Garuda and his minions are on their way. They will destroy us and enslave the survivors if we don't stop them. Our best chance is, of course, to have our Champion and our Guardian at peak strength. They'll be the ones to end the Garuda's life once and for all." Bo and Lauren exchanged a weary glance, a look that said 'we're _so_ not ready for this.'

"But how am I going to be able to stop this when I can't remember anything past a month ago? I mean, how can I fight something I know nothing about?"

"The Garuda," Lauren began, catching everyone's attention "is a being older than the fae and humanity combined. It feeds off of hatred, rage and misery. Since the last fae war ended, it's been starving due to the lack of conflict between the light and the dark. It will come at the peak of battle, when the anger and hate is at its highest and it will try to kill us then." Bo blinked.

"So, basically, we really need this thing dead."

"Yup."

"So how do we kill it?" Everyone looked down. Bo groaned. "Seriously? We don't know how to kill this thing?" Trick shook his head.

"No. the Garuda isn't mentioned in any prophecy book or fae history that I've ever read. But if what Harbinger has told us is true, it'll come down to you and Lauren at the end." The two exchanged looks, looks of worry and uncertainty. "There's no way to know what is coming, but we need to stand as a united front against it. We need to give all of our support to the Champion so she can—"

"Excuse me." Bo said, her face making it seem like she was about to be sick. She stood quickly, lifting Tanner from her lap and placing him and her sweater on Dyson's before heading for the bathroom. Lauren got up and followed after her.

_**Lauren**_

I pushed open the bathroom door after Bo, finding her leaning over the sink. I heard her heart pounding in her chest. I gave her a few seconds before I spoke. "Bo?"

"I can't do this." She said, looking at me in the mirror. "I can't be the Champion."

"Bo—"

"No, don't you 'Bo' me. I can't lead a war, Lauren. I'm not a Champion. I'm not this leader everyone thinks I am!" She started pacing and I watched her every step. Leaning against the wall, I gave her time to cool down a little bit. However, she didn't seem to be trying to calm down. She just seemed to be getting more worked up. "How do they expect me to be able to fight something we know nothing about! This is ridiculous!"

"Why?" she stopped and looked at me, her eyes shooting daggers at me.

"What do you mean, 'why'? They want me to kill something that eats fae like me for breakfast!" I grabbed her by the shoulders, noticing how she had just entered the first stage of a full blown panic attack. Something that was _very _unlike Bo.

"Okay, Bo, let's just have a seat right here on the ground and we'll talk this out, alright?" She stared at me for a second before nodding slowly, letting me help her to the surprisingly clean tile flooring. She didn't say anything for a few moments before her breathing calmed down.

"Can we just not talk about it? Just talk about something else?" I smiled and nodded once.

"Okay. What do you want to talk about?"

"You." I blinked. Wow, didn't see that one coming. Instantly, however, I felt my walls going up, trapping in whatever truth she wanted like a prisoner. "I want to know more about you, seeing as you pretty much know everything about me." _Including what I look like naked. _She added mentally.

"Um…" I tapped my temple, letting her know I heard that. She gave me a suggestive smirk and instantly a hot blush burned across my cheeks. I tried to hide the embarrassed smile that crossed my face and she smiled at me.

"You're cute when you blush, add that to the list of things I _do _know about you."

"Oh yeah? And what is on this list of 'things Bo knows about Lauren'?"

"Well, I know you're a doctor. You're super smart. You have wings. And you're cute when you blush." I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Wow, that's an extensive list right there."

"Oh yeah? Well, I'd say that's pretty good considering how I had my entire list erased by amnesia." I forced myself to maintain the relaxed composure, to hide the agony I felt every time that event was brought up. Unfortunately, she caught the shift in my moods and reached out towards me. I stopped myself from flinching away from her touch. It wasn't that she repulsed me. It was more so that I'd gotten so used to people keeping their distance, so used to hurting those who got too close, that I didn't want to have anyone close. I didn't want to hurt anyone, but that didn't mean it didn't happen. "You don't give me enough credit, Doc." She whispered softly, cupping my cheek and running her thumb over my cheek bone.

I didn't move. I held my breath.

"I see a lot more than you think I do."

"oh yeah? And what do you see?"

"I can see how miserable you are. I can see how lost and alone you are, even when you're sitting around a table with a group of friends like a few minutes ago. I can see that you're vulnerable, despite being able to throw people through walls." She withdrew her hand, placing it in her lap and staring at her fingers. "That Old one…" I felt my chest contract painfully "it hurt you bad, didn't it?"I took my time to figure out what I was going to say.

To figure out whether I was going to say the truth, or make something up. I chose the first option.

"Yes." She nodded, looking at her fingers. "Why do you keep coming back to me as the topic of discussion?" I asked without thinking. She sighed, not bothering to vocalize her thoughts anymore.

"_I just want to know more about what I forgot." _I shook my head slowly. She wanted to know more about what she forgot, and I wanted to forget that she and I had loved each other so I could move on with my life. .No matter how impossible that would be.

_Bo giggled as she rolled on top of me. I adjusted so my wings splayed out on either side of my body, hanging off the edges of the bed. The candles still burned brightly in the room as we rested, her forehead against mine, our fingers interlocked, resting beside my head. Her free hand caressed the side of my face, my eyes closed slowly as a serenity rushed through me. Bo kissed the corner of my mouth and I smiled._

"_You're so beautiful," she whispered so sweetly it broke my heart. A dull pain settled in my throat and I felt the tears roll down my face. Bo's thumb brushed away the droplets. "Lauren? Are you okay?" I nodded but couldn't stop crying. _

"_Yeah, yeah I'm fine." I murmured, her other hand leaving mine and holding the other side of my face. _

"_Why are you crying?" I opened my eyes, looking up at her dark eyes, so full of concern. I took her hand and pressed her palm to my lips._

"_My life, for the past couple years, has been bleak, empty. Just day in, day out of working to keep Tanner safe. And then you showed up and…and everything changed. It was like my life meant something finally. You didn't treat me like I'm lesser because I'm human. You love me, Bo." My breath caught in my throat as it all suddenly seemed to sink in. "No one has said that to me in a very, very long time."_

"_Oh Lauren." She whispered, kissing my forehead, the tip of my nose and then my trembling lips. "I do love you. I'll always love you. Nothing on this planet could ever change that." I looked into her eyes and she touched her forehead to mine again, her eyes still holding the faintest violet glow she had gotten from feeding off of me. I held her gaze for a few seconds longer before I pulled her in for a desperate kiss, needing to feel her there with me. So I could know she really did love me. _

_The sharp tingle returned on my lips as she fed out of reflex. I held her close to me, feeling her fingers splay over the sides of my face, holding me still. I watched as her eyes returned to the vibrant violet, knowing my eyes would match hers. She released me again, just as quickly as she'd started, laying small kisses over my neck. That was the beginning of one of the best night of my life._

"Lauren?" I snapped back to the present, staring into the same Succubus' eyes and I saw nothing. Not the love that had been there before, not the fear that had replaced the love, just innocence. Like that of a child. Suddenly, I didn't want to be alone with her. It felt wrong. Like I was taking advantage of her. So, instead, I stood up and brushed off my pants, holding my hand out to her.

"Come on." I said and she looked at me, perplexed "I think it's time we faced the music." She hesitantly took my hand and I pulled her to her feet with ease. I moved to turn towards the door, when her grip on my hand stopped me. I looked at her to see her eyes fixed on our hands. I looked down just as she swiveled hers, locking our fingers together. I held my breath for a moment before pulling my hand away and moving towards the door. "We, uh, we'd better get going. Don't want to hold the meeting up too long."

"Lauren wait—" I shoved the door open and walked out into the bar again,, trying to hide the way I was coming undone.

_**Bo**_

I threw my jacket on the couch and plopped down. I put my hands over my eyes.

_The hell is wrong with me?_

The meeting ended quickly after Lauren and I got out of the bathroom, as interesting as that sounds. No one wanted to hang around, especially with me being an awkward child around the blonde. Hold her hand, even for that brief moment, felt good. And I knew I shouldn't be having those feelings for her. I was with Ryan. As interesting as it was for a succubus, I at least had to stay loyal. Plus, from what I gathered, Lauren was still human, despite the weird thing with the manti-whatsits. And wouldn't that mean I could kill her?

_Stop thinking about sex with Lauren!_

I laid down, using my arms as pillows, staring at the turned off TV.

For the first time since the Incident, I felt confused. There was definitely something going on between Lauren and I. Definitely tension whenever we were alone together. Especially for her, which is why holding her hand so intimately was probably not the best idea.

A loud clang cut off my train of thought. I looked up towards the ceiling, my brows furrowing. "Kenz?"

"Yeah?" she yawned walking into the living room, rubbing her eyes.

"did you hear that?"

"Hear wh—" then, out of the blue, one of the pipes above my head burst, cold water drenching us both in an endless blast. We both screamed, throwing our hands up to try to block the water smacking us both in the head.

"Kenzi!"

"Bo!"

"This is not good!"

"Nope!"

"I think we need to call a plumber!"

"Probably! Do you know any?"

"No, but I have an idea!"

**So, the mental institution got me again…but they say if I have enough reviews they can give me a computer so I can update. So, what do you say? Help a sister out?**


	6. Heartbeat

**Hello,**

**Sorry it's been sooooo long since I updated. I had one softball tournament after another, either coaching or playing and then I had school which is always awesome so I had zero time to get this going again. But, here's a super long update to slate your thirst for now.**

**Also, a little side note. If you play the song 'heartbeat' by everyone's favourite sex icon, (no, not me) Enrique after the dream bit, it adds a bit of mood. **

**Just sayin'**

**CHAPTER FIVE**

"Hello." Dyson said when I opened the door. He held a tool box in one hand, two sheets of drywall tucked under his other. "Someone call a plumber?"

"Thanks for coming." I said, stepping back and letting him and Hale in. I called them while Kenzi tried to plug the hole in the pipe. He walked me through the procedure of turning off the water in the house and then said he'd be over in a little while with some help. I'd definitely expected Hale, but I hadn't expected him to bring along the blonde.

I blinked in shock when I saw the angel walk in carefully. Instantly, my hands pulled through my wet hair, trying to straighten out the tangled locks as if I could before she saw. "Hi, Lauren." I said, trying to sound smooth. "I didn't know you were coming." She smiled at me warily.

"Yeah, well, Dyson said it would be good for team building if we all chipped in to help and Amelia agreed to watch Tanner so…"

"Oh, I'm, uh, glad you came. I just wished I looked maybe a little bit _not _like a drowned rat." She smiled at me, eyes holding a look of something I'd seen so many times, yet couldn't place my finger on.

"You always…"" she trailed off before clearing her throat. "You could never look like a drowned rat." She gave me a feeble smile and I didn't have a chance to say anything before Dyson called her over. "Excuse me." She breathed before breezing around me and walking to the centre of the room.

Out of nowhere, a full grown lion leap at her, letting out an earth shattering roar as he did. Lauren caught Simba's front paws before he smashed into her. They stood there, facing each other for a few tense moments before his fierce snarl faded, a bright pink tongue lulling out of his mouth like a dog's. "Hey Simba!" she smiled genuinely, resting his massive paws on her shoulders and scratching his ears through his thick, dark mane. "You've gotten so big since I last saw you! How are you!"

"Good." He rumbled in his deep voice, nudging her face in rough affection with his nose "You?"

"As good as ever." His blue eyes glanced over my way and I felt a cold chill at the sight of the intelligence lingering there. I'd been living with Kenzi and the manticore for a little over a month, but I'd never gotten used to seeing such thought and smarts in, well, an animal's eyes.

"Simba! Buddy!" Kenzi broke into their conversation, catching the feline's attention from the front door. "I know I'm really badass and everything, but I can't drag these drywall sheets in alone. Help a sista out!" He looked at the blonde for a second

"We'll talk later?" She nodded.

"Definitely."

He dropped down onto all fours and walked past me, towards the gothic Russian waiting for him. She didn't hesitate before swinging a leg over him and sitting on him like a horse. "When did I become a pony ride?"

"Now."

I turned my eyes on her for a moment longer, watching the way her eyes analyzed the broken pipe before she looked back at me. Our eye contact made me look away blushing before walking right into a beam.

"Shit!" I hissed under my breath, feeling a hot blush explode over my face. I quickly walked around the obstacle I just walked into and headed for the bathroom to dry my hair. I bounded up the stairs, rubbing my forehead and muttering curses under my breath.

I reached the bathroom and looked at my reflection in the mirror. A small red mark was beginning to appear dead centre between my eyes. I rubbed it angrily before turning the tap. Then I remembered we had no water. "stupid, stupid, stupid." I snarled, thoroughly embarrassed that I walked straight into the pillar I'd known was there. A few minutes later, Kenzi's boots tapped against the floor as she followed me.

"I saw you from outside. That was smooth." She teased leaning against the doorframe. "I thought you were the Queen of coolness, the chick who could make cut crystal look like brambles."

"Yeah, well, I am. But that blonde…"

"Makes you walk headfirst into pillars."

"Yeah."

"Maybe that's a good thing." I turned around on her, not believing what I was hearing. "Well, not the whole possible brain damage thing, but her making you stupid." I sighed and grabbed a towel, drying off my hair a little bit more.

"It doesn't _feel _good."

"You could always _make it _feel good." She said suggestively. I looked at her incredulously.

"Are you trying to get me to get down with Lauren?"

"I don't think she'd have a problem with getting naked with you."

"I'm with Ryan." I said simply. "I'm not going to sleep around on him."

"You're a succubus. Sleeping around is quite literally the definition of what you do."

"But Lauren—"

"Has mad feeling for you."

"As much as the thought of getting her between the sheets is…" the thought made me tingle "hot, I don't want to get her going on a one night stand. I don't want to hurt her more than she's already hurting."

"She's tough."

"Not _that _tough." I just shook my head, remembering our moment in the Dal. "We'd better get down there and oversee the renovation, lest a stripper pole be installed in our living room."

+/+\+

"Goddamn." I breathed as Kenzi sat beside me on the back of the couch, watching the workers go about their business.

"What?"

"Lauren."

I watched almost perversely as Lauren hoisted the sheet of dry wall above her head. Dyson had decided to install an actual ceiling at least where the pipes were to protect them a little bit better after he switched out all the plumbing for new stuff.

I don't know if you know, but dry wall is some heavy ass shit. So it takes a lot of muscle just for two people to hold it up. But Lauren, being super human, could do it on her own. But that didn't mean it didn't require muscle work.

As an added bonus, due to the weird heat, they'd all taken off their shirts. With just a sports bra covering her naughty bits, I had a full view of her amazingly toned muscles, laced with a thin sheen of sweat.

_Gawddamn._

"I had that?" I asked, watching as Lauren heaved the sheet higher above her head while Hale lined it up with the roof.

"Yup."

"Did I hit it?"

"Oh _yeah._"

"Damn."

"yup."

Lauren took another step up the ladder she stood on, trying to hold the sheet more firmly against the roof for Hale. She held it tight, pushing up as hard as she could without breaking the somewhat delicate board. I noticed the leg of the ladder beginning to shake as she moved higher. I knew what was going to happen before it did. Suddenly, the leg gave way and she fell forwards with a yelp. "Lauren!" Dyson lunged for her, reaching out with his hand. He was too far away to help her. Hale was on a different ladder.

I didn't know I was moving until I wrapped my arms around her waist, trying to hold her up. Unfortunately, the force of her fall spun us, knocking the ladder over on our way down. I landed on top of her, her sweat slick skin sticking to my own. I pulled my arms out from under her and pushed myself up on my hands. I looked down into big brown eyes, full of shock and wonder. I stayed like that for a few moments, not sure if I was embarrassed or glad she was okay.

"Hi." I said quietly, trying to ease the weird tension. A small smile twisted her lips, her arms by her head, the back of her hands resting on the hair splayed around her face.

My conversation with Kenzi rang through my head again. And I couldn't help but see the mental image I was sure had been real at one point before. A memory that had been taken away from me.

I could see Lauren, beneath me like she was now but on a bed. The morning sunlight filtering through the windows, lighting her golden hair and chocolate brown eyes. I could see her smiling at me, reaching up to tuck a stray lock of hair behind my ear as she told me how beautiful she thought I was. How glad she was that we'd found each other. And I would agree, tell her how much I loved her.

_Love _

My heart struck painfully against my ribs and I moved to get up, suddenly scared of the thoughts running through my head. Before I could move an inch from her, Lauren tensed, her hands shooting to my biceps, holding them almost painfully tight. Her eyes locked on something above my head. In the blink of an eye, she pulled me down to her again, arms locking around my shoulder, pinning me to her body. Next to come were her wings wrapping around me, holding me firmer to her.

It was just a second later that the jarring crack of the dry wall sounded on the other side of the barrier she'd put up. There was a painful second of silence, just her and my heavy breathing.

I knew Dyson, Hale and Kenzi were just on the other side of Lauren's wings, but right then it seemed like they were forever away. Like we were in a sound proof room. There was just barely enough light in the sudden enclosure for me to see the faint outline of things. I felt Lauren's breath tickle my neck, her arms slowly relaxing. "Are you okay?" she asked me softly, hands gently squeezing my arms. I nodded, a little breathless myself.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Are you?" She laughed quietly

"As good as I can be, one minute a succubus is falling on me, the next, drywall."

"Sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it. I'm not that delicate." Then a weird quiet came over us. My hands resting on her shoulders, her hands falling by her sides. I knew she wanted to hold me. I could feel it in the way her hands fidgeted. The way her muscles tensed. She cleared her throat. "Bo?"

"Yeah?"

"I—"

"HELLO! BO? ARE YOU ALIVE?" a rasping sounded on the outside of the wing shield. "WE MOVED OFF ALL THE RUBBLE! YOU'RE IN THE CLEAR TO GET OFF THE DOCTOR…NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH GETTING THE DOCTOR _OFF_" Lauren's wings flung open, whacking Kenzi in the face and sending her on her ass.

A puff of dust flew into the air when her wings opened up, leaving me hacking and coughing as Dyson grabbed my arm and helped me to my feet. Once up right, I turned just in time to see Simba nudging Lauren with his nose before loosely taking her bicep in his mouth and heave hoing her up.

"You guys okay?" Dyson asked, looking between us. Lauren nodded stiffly. "Good. We got some more work to do."

About two hours later, the pipe was fixed and all six of us had made a small fire in the backyard. We sat around it for about half an hour before half of us were too drunk to sit up straight, too many empty cans of beer laying around to even begin to count them. Lauren, Simba and I ended up being the sober ones. I had about a can and a half before the beer lost its appeal, Simba didn't drink and Lauren apparently _couldn't _get drunk. So it was up to us to drag our hammered friends to the living room to sleep it off. Simba carried a passed out Kenzi to her room, I helped Hale along, and Lauren walked the wobbling Dyson to the couch.

"Ya-ya know, Lauren," he slurred, one arm wrapped over her shoulder as they stumbled along. "ur, ur like a real good friend. I mean…you—you understand me better dan _any_one I've eva met!" She chuckled and helped him lay down.

"Same here, Dyson."

"No, I mean, for reals. You're just like me! I-I didn't see it before this whole thing happened. But now, now I can see it. We're like brothers!...'scept you're a woman."

"You need to shut up and go to sleep, Dyson."

"Kay." It wasn't long before his soft snoring filled the room along with Hale's. I looked at Lauren, she looked back. The silent question floated between us.

_Where could Lauren sleep?_

I mean, I had my bed, but it felt kind of weird asking her to join me, or offering to share. And the boys had taken up our two couches, Kenzi and Simba were in Kenzi's room. Lauren shook her head, giving me a weary smile.

"Don't worry about it Bo." She said softly, looking around. "Go off to bed, you look tired."

_What about you? _I thought to myself _You look more tired than anyone I've ever seen. _

"I don't sleep much anymore." She said, crossing her arms over her chest, trying to look like she was okay. "I'll clean up."

"Lauren, do you want to share my bed? I mean, for sleeping purposes?" I saw a flash of something pass through her eyes, something I understood for once.

A look that said 'I'd like nothing more'.

Still, she shook her head. "No, Bo, I can't ask you to let me share. It's not fair."

"I'm the one who's offering here." Still she shook her head.

"I can sleep on the ground. Its fine."

"No its not!" I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration. "Look, Lauren," I started, looking her in the eyes, seeing the careful look there. "I don't know what we had, what happened to us," for a moment so brief that I wasn't sure what I saw, it looked like I slapped her "but I won't let you sleep on the ground or somewhere completely inappropriate. So, you are going to share my bed tonight, and you are going to sleep. No if and/or buts." She looked at me a moment longer, judging whether or not she had a chance to sway me. After a moment, she nodded.

"Okay."

+/+\+

I was standing in a darkened hallway. I could see the wooden paneling on the wall, the pictures with faceless people. People I didn't know, nor would I ever know. I heard the birds chirping, so I knew it had to be sometime during the day at least.

Suddenly I was moving. My feet took steps forwards but didn't make a single sound. I could hear it now, the soft breaths, ruffling of bed sheets.

It didn't occur to me to think of figuring out where I was, where I was going. What I would see when I got there. I just kept moving. It was like watching a movie. You have so many questions, but you don't ask. You know the camera man will take you to the answers soon enough. And so, I waited as I moved closer to the door at the end of the hall.

I reached the door and stopped for a moment, listening as a deathly quiet fell through the air.

Then, I pushed the door open.

Two people were on a queen sized bed covered in white linins. A soft morning light illuminated the room with an almost heavenly glow. Tranquility was overwhelming. A kind of peace that I'd never felt before; like all was right in the world created within this room.

I knew who these two were.

The brunette lay back against the headboard, elbows supporting her on the mattress. A lacy black bra covered her chest, the comforter covering her lower stomach, but exposing her legs. Her eyes were locked intently on the pair of eyes in front of her, the eyes that belonged to the blonde cupping her face. Her face hardened into a look of confusion and concentration.

The blonde's brows were furrowed as well, as if thinking about something so intently it made her lose herself in a place beyond that moment. Her eyes focused on the brunette's lips, but it was clear she wasn't truly looking at them, but off somewhere into her own mind.

The moment was so intimate that I felt like I was violating their solace just being there, wherever _there _was.

"Lauren." The other me said, her voice soft but strong. Lauren looked up, her wings pulled into her body tightly, against the red lace of her own bra. Other Me loosely grabbed Lauren's forearm, forcing the blonde to look at her.

"You could have anyone." The blonde said, her voice hard, almost frustrated. "You could have anyone you wanted. Someone with money. Someone who could give you the world and more. Someone who isn't a freak—a fugitive. Someone who could make you happy for the rest of your life." Her eyes bore into Other Bo's, with an intensity that would've made me flinch away. Her hands dropped from the brunette's face. "Why are you here now?" There was a moment of silence. "I am nothing compared to the fae who want you." Other Bo let out a growl of frustration, clamping her hands on either side of the Blonde's face so tightly it must've hurt.

"I am here, Lauren," she started as a weird hum filled the air, slowly getting louder. "Because I don't _want _anyone else. Because money is nothing in the end." The sound grew louder, starting to put an uncomfortable amount of pressure on my ears. "And one day the world will end. Because the only thing that can beat everything is what we have, Lauren, what no one can ever bend or break. Because I won't let them—" The pressure suddenly turned to excruciating pain, forcing me to clamp my hands over my ears, trying to block out the sound that was making black dots dance across my vision.

Still, I fought to keep my eyes open, even as I dropped to my knees. I had to try and understand what was happening. Why this was happening. Through the swarms of darkness I saw Other Bo shake Lauren just the slightest bit, pulling her face closer. I screamed as the pressure made blood trickle between my fingers, my ear drums bursting. Still, I fought to see what was to come. Her lips moved, but I couldn't hear what she said. She said one thing more before they leaned closer together. A milimetre from their lips touching, and the blackness over took me.

I jolted up right in bed, my heart hammering in my chest so hard I was sure the entire house could hear it. My skin was slick with sweat, my entire body trembling violently. The bedroom was still dark; I looked at the clock before falling back down to the mattress with a groan. It was only four in the morning. I blinked up at the ceiling, then looked to my left.

Lauren was gone.

Taking in another shaking breath, I swung my legs over the edge, trying not to think about the nightmare.

I searched every room in the house before finally finding Lauren outside by the fire pit, a new flame licking the sky as she sat on the ground, legs crossed, hands resting on her knees, eyes closed. I stood in the doorway for a few moments, watching the way the light danced across her skin, how the flickering light seemed to bring a new kind of beauty to her.

"Take a picture" she sighed "It'll last a whole lot longer."

"If I had a camera." I said cheekily. I refuse to let her ruffle me out of playful spite. She smirked slightly and I took that as permission to enter her domain. I took almost timid steps into the range of the fire light. I didn't know what to do next, or why I didn't just go back to bed after finding out where she was. Nevertheless, I stood a few feet from her, looking at the fire. "Why're you up?"

"Told you, I don't sleep."

"Don't or can't?"

"Does it matter?"

"I guess not." I admitted begrudgingly. Either way, she was awake. Just like me.

"Nightmares?" she asked and I looked at her, noticing how her eyes were open now, full of a kind of all knowing look. I blushed profusely.

"You really need to stop it with the mind reading voodoo shit."

"I didn't have to read your mind. I heard you wake up in your bedroom."

"From all the way out here?"

"Yup." She sighed and laid back, wings spread out on either side of her, looking up at the sky, admiring the stars. She glanced at me, and patted her wing, silently extending and invitation to join her. I hesitated just for a second before padding over.

Carefully, I laid myself down on the smooth wings, close enough I could feel her body heat radiating against me.

"You know," she began, eyes locked on the sky, a small smile on her lips. "When I was little, and I had a nightmare, my mother would take me outside in the middle of the night, out onto our porch. We'd lay down and look out at the stars and she'd tell me stories about all the Greek gods and the legends that came with the constellations. This one night, she told me the story about Callisto and Zeus. About Ursa Major and Ursa Minor."

"What Minor and Who Minor?" She chuckled and pointed at the sky.

"The big bear and the little bear."

"The Big Dipper and Little Dipper." She full out laughed for a few seconds, her body trembling as she just about pissed herself. "What's so funny?" she shook her head at me and wiped her eyes.

"Nothing. Sorry. Anyway, Callisto was Artemis' best friend, some think of her to be her sort of romantic partner, but without the physical part. Anyway, Callisto had sworn herself to a vow of chastity, as Artemis' most favoured Huntress, it was kind of a must. But Zues saw Callisto and instantly wanted her. So, he disguised himself as Artemis and, when Callisto went to him, he hurt her, forcing himself on her. A few months later, Artemis saw that she was pregnant, and banished her. Hera, enraged by the betrayal, turned Callisto into a bear after her son was born.

"No one really knows how the story ended, Callisto was either shot by her son or by Zues, but we do know that they were both together in the end, spending eternity in the sky."

"Wow…" I breathed, staring up at the glowing dots. "That's so sad." Lauren nodded.

"Yeah. When I first heard it, I told myself the same thing. But a few years down the road, I told myself that I would one day find a Callisto, someone who'd been wronged so horribly, someone who was lost, someone who was in need of help and had no one to turn to, and I would show them there was still good in the world. That they could be loved unconditionally and undeniably. No matter what."

My heart gave a painful thud against my ribs. _Has anyone shown you the same kindness? _The thought passed through my mind before I could stop it. If she heard me, she ignored it.

"Did you find your Callisto?" She looked at me, a glimmer in her eyes which was impossible _not _to understand.

She had.

Her hand cupped my cheek gently, the first time she'd actually touched me of her own volition. I'd be lying if I said it didn't feel good. Her thumb stroked across my cheekbone and the look in her eyes made my heart start to hammer in my chest. I felt a hot blush spread across my face, my palms turning slick with nervousness. Slowly, we both sat up simultaneously. Our faces moving closer together, until our foreheads touched. Lips parted, we both sat there, trapped in an intimacy I'd never felt before.

With her free hand, she took mine and placed it over her heart so I could feel it pounding from within its cage. I felt her breath brush against my face as I subconsciously counted every bump against my palm. My other hand knotted in the hair at the base of her neck. Our lips hadn't even touched yet, and I felt like we'd gone farther than I ever had before. A place I'd never known, yet felt so right.

So familiar.

This was more than sexual. Far more than physical. I could feel her heart beating in time with my own, hear her soft breaths and the rush of blood in her veins as she was locked in this moment with me. She shifted her head slightly, making it so we were cheek to cheek now. I pulled her hand from the side of my face and pressed it over my own heart, letting her feel what was going on inside. Letting her feel the matching rhythm.

And then our lips met.

It was a chaste kiss at first, closed mouthed, lasting just under two seconds. There was a painfully brief moment where we were back to the beginning before her lips crashed against mine again.

Fingers clawed at skin as I pressed her back onto the ground, melding my body against hers tightly. Her arms wound around my waist, hand splaying out against my back. Our kisses were passionate, fierce, and mind blowing. I gasped as her fingers dug into my skin, whimpering as her lips touched under my chin, slowly moving down my neck and stopping once she reached the sweet spot between my neck and shoulder. Then I felt it.

The surge of power as the succubus took over, as my eyes lit up bright and blue. I pushed myself up, holding my breath, squeezing my eyes shut as if that would make a difference. She was still for a moment before her hand touched my face.

Control. I needed control. I didn't want to hurt Lauren. I couldn't hurt Lauren.

_Open your eyes, Bo… _Her voice whispered in my mind. _It's okay, nothing bad will happen. I promise you. _I waited a second before complying, letting my eyes slide open slowly.

I was met by glimmering rubies. Beautiful, glimmering rubies. "I've got you, Bo, forever." She leaned up to me, capturing my lips in her own. Her hands roamed my body, encouraging me to feed, revving me up. So, I let go of my self-restraint. I opened myself up and dove into her.

When her chi entered me, rainbows exploded inside. I'd never had such a feeling pulsing through me. I grabbed her face in both hands, taking it until it became too much. I could feel her. Feel her soul, her mind, her heart. I let myself fall to her, my head falling against hers, my entire body quivering. I felt her hold me close, fingers running along my body, letting me cope with what was happening inside.

It was like coming down from a high. An adrenaline rush that left me wanting more, but less at the same time. I looked down at her again when I was mostly recovered, finding dark, violet eyes there, a light purple glow swirled within them. She kissed my chin gently before moving to my lips.

"You okay?" she asked softly, resting her head against mine. I nodded, still vibrating ever so slightly.

"Yeah." I nodded, swallowing. Her hands laid on my waist gently.

I understood now what Lauren and I had before. What no one would tell me. Those feelings I had when I fed off of her, those were a better explanation than anything else could've been. More than friends, more than lovers, more than I could have with Ryan.

_Ryan. _

I sat up lightning fast, straddling her waist, my heart stopping. Oh God.

"Ryan." I breathed, remembering that I was in a relationship with someone else. "Oh my God!" Lauren didn't move. Didn't try to sway me, tell me that it would be okay. She knew it was time for me to make a choice. To decide what I wanted to do. She wouldn't do anything to make me choose her. It had to be my own decision.

"What are you going to do?" Lauren asked in a neutral tone. I looked down at her, seeing the honest curiosity there. I didn't know what to say.

So I told the truth.

"I don't know."

**Sigh, don't you hate them cliff hangers?**

**Good news! For a review, you can own your very own 'Cliff hanger Escape Pack!' Guaranteed to help you kick the crap out of authors who take too damn long to update! Get'em while you can! They're goin' fast!**


	7. New Beginnings in a Can of Mace

**You guys are lucky that I live in a place that's rainy even in summer. I was supposed to be out at a really important tournament this weekend, but we were rained out so I was all revved up with nowhere to go. And this was born. Almost 6000 words of angst. **

**CHAPTER SIX**

_**Lauren **_

"_I can see you" the voice whispers softly in my ear. All is dark. I don't know where I am, I can't hear anything but the thudding of my heart and his voice. "Past your innocent look, past the good doctor façade you put on to fool those idiots you call your friends."_

"_I don't know what you're talking about." I pant, the temperature suddenly freezing cold. "I have no façade. My friends are no idiots." A low rumbling laugh shook the air. I moved my head and a chain stopped me. I whimpered as the metal collar pushed painfully against my wind pipe. Fingers prying at it, I stood up, straining against it._

"_Oh, I should have mentioned, I had to chain you up, precautionary measures; can't have a guardian running rampant, now can we?" _

_I stared forwards as two, brightly glowing eyes appeared in the darkness. My heart stopped for a moment before breaking into double time. "Who are you?" I demanded, squinting as a brilliant spot light shone straight down on me. The sudden brightness made my retinas burn. "Where am I?" a softer feminine chuckle shook me to the core. _

"_Lauren, don't you recognize me?" the sound of heeled boots tapped closer and closer. I refused to move, refused to show fear. Whatever this thing was, it wouldn't turn me into a weakling. I wouldn't let it think I was scared. "Maybe a little light will clear things up for you."_

_I bit back the wail of despair. _

_It was her. _

_Bo._

_She looked at me, eyes glowing a devilish blue. No pang of need hit me at the sight, no instant longing that usually drove me to insanity. Instead, a sharp hatred grew within me. My fist clenched by my sides, body vibrated with fury. _

_This was not Bo. This was not my love. This was evil. Pure evil._

_I took a swipe at her as she moved closer. Mid swing, a cold chain clamped around my wrists and pulled me tightly towards the ground. I had to use all of my concentration to keep myself from crumbling under the strain. _

"_You're not Bo." I stated flatly between clenched teeth, glaring directly into the blue eyes before me as she walked closer and closer. _

"_Are you sure?" It asked, so close I could feel it's clothing brushing against me. "Don't I smell like her?" It leaned close enough that the fronts of our bodies were flush together. "Don't I feel like her?" Its hands clamped to my waist, so tightly it hurt. I grunted as a sweat broke out over my body, the fight between me and the chains becoming more difficult as the time ticked on. Every muscles was tense in the battle, not allowing me to fight against whatever demon I was facing. "Don't I make you hot like she does?" She panted in my ear, breath brushing my neck, lips caressing my skin as she kissed just below my jaw, nipping the skin there slightly. "You poor, poor soul," she whispered breathlessly, panting just the way Bo did, "you've been neglected for so long, let me make it better…" Her lips hovered just over mine for a moment, hands moving from my waist up my torso, groping me shamelessly as she waited for me to break down. "Let me make you feel good…" _

_For a moment, I felt myself letting go, allowing for this thing to get into my head. Maybe it had been the fact that I had felt nothing for so long, that the only thing that had ever brought me happiness, a belief in something better, had been Bo's touch. Bo herself. _

_Maybe, if Bo hadn't kissed me last night, I would've given in completely. I would've forgotten the way it felt for her to put her hands on me, for her skin to touch mine._

_But Bo _had _kissed me. And this thing didn't understand the feeling that was shared when the touch came from someone who cared for you. _

_I snapped my head forwards, contacting the one in front of me with a sharp crack. She staggered away from me. I smirked as she rubbed her head, revelling in my small victory. "You can use Bo's memories to assemble this pitiful illusion all you want, Old One." I said evenly, watching the aggravation rage across her face. "But you will _never _be able to use it to manipulate me. Now, if you're done playing pretend—" with a wild shriek she lunged forwards, grabbing me by the throat and pinning me to the wall, the chains restraining me vanishing. Her fingers throttled me, the blood pounding in my ears painfully. _

"_You listen to me, you ignorant little shit." She hissed, nails digging into my neck. "You _will _give into me eventually. You think you're so perfect, so _pure" _she spat the last word like it was dirt in her mouth "But I've got news for you, good doctor, there is evil in every pathetic being on that earth. From the holiest priest to the most innocent child, every one of you is born with evil in your hearts. You more so than most. And, so help me, I will get that evil from you one way or another." I smirked the best I could, though it was getting hard to move my face with all the blood trapped there. _

"_I'd like to see you try." She only stared at me a moment longer before her nails dug into my neck . A light behind her turned on, illuminating a small figure tied to a chair. It only took me half a second before my heart stopped. _

"_Tanner…" I breathed, eyes locked on his gagged mouth and the tears streaming down his face. I looked back at the Old One, seeing the cruel look in her eyes. "Don't you dare." I warned, knowing her intentions. "Don't bring him into this! He's just a child!" Her eyes travelled down to my lips again, lingering there in a seductive manner, like she was contemplating a tough decision._

"_No. He's the chink in your armour." she said in a voice that sent chills down my spine. She released her hold on my throat and I lurched forwards as she turned around. The harsh bite of chains snapping around my body hit me again and held me in place. "You wanted to see me try, _Guardian."

"_I swear to god I will kill you if you so much as lay a finger on him!" I snapped, yanking against the chains with everything I had. Tanner's crying was the only sound I heard reaching my ears. She made his way to him slowly, tantalizing us both. His eyes were locked on mine, begging me to help him. "Shhh, Tanner," I cooed to him, still pulling against the chains, hearing them jingle as the taunted me and my attempt at escape. "It's going to be okay. You-you're going to be just fine. Goddamn it! Leave him alone!" I screamed at her, the helplessness starting to set in. _

"_The death of a loved one…" she said gently, smoothing down Tanner's long hair. "It can do a lot to people. Destroy their lives, make them hate, hell bent on revenge…" she turned her eyes on me again, her hand resting on the back of Tanner's head. "Make them…evil."_

"_Don't you dare—"_

"_You wanted to see me try, Guardian." She repeated, her eyes silencing me completely. She chuckled softly before losing all emotion whatsoever. "watch me." Her hand latched onto the back of Tanner's neck. Within a second, his screams filled the air and his body ignited in a blazing inferno so strong, I could feel its heat. _

"_NO!" I shrieked, my body throwing itself against its restraints with such force, I barely registered my arm popping out of its socket._

I jolted upwards in bed, my arm numb from where Bo must've fallen asleep on it. I looked beside me, seeing her sleeping face, the peaceful innocence. Still, my body jerked away from her. She shared the face of my tormentor, but she wasn't. I knew that. But the nightmare was still fresh in my mind. The fear, the hatred still churned in my heart.

I shook my head hard, trying to dislodge the lingering cold that wrapped around me like tentacles. I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I casted on glance back at the succubus behind me before standing up and walking to the bathroom. I turned on the lights

I turned the tap, splashing cold water in my face, reveling in the refreshing coolness. I took a shaky breath. "Pull it together, Lauren, it was just a dream, it wasn't real." I looked at myself in the mirror, trying to find some kind of reassurance in my own image. All I found was the look of someone who didn't know what to believe anymore. I pulled my hair back from my face and over one shoulder. How could I keep this up?

I was so tired. So tired that I couldn't sleep. That I just wanted to disappear. I took another breath and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Lauren?" A tired voice whispered from behind me. My heart jumped in surprise. "You okay?" Bo asked softly, leaning against the door frame. I nodded, wiping my hands nervously on my pants.

"Yeah…yeah, I was just trying to clean myself up a little bit." I murmured unconvincingly. The look on her face told me she didn't believe a word I said. She moved close enough that I could feel her body heat. Her comfort level with me seemed to have skyrocketed since our moment by the fire.

"Why don't I believe you?" She asked, looking me in the eyes, arms crossed. A small, playful smile rested on her lips. I looked away from her, turning back towards the mirror, resting my hands on the sink.

"I don't want to talk about it." I said simply, tensing when she put her hands on my waist. Flashes of the Old One digging the same fingers into my flesh rang fresh through my mind. But the touches this time were gentle, soft. Tender.

"Okay." She said simply, not going to fight me on anything. There was a look of concern on her features as she tugged on one side of me, making me turn without force. I reached my hand up to her face, cupping it gently, running my thumb over her cheek bone experimentally, hoping to eliminate the jumpiness from the dream. Her hand caught my wrist, pulling my hand away. "Um, Lauren—" I flushed, realising that wasn't exactly the most appropriate action.

"Sorry." I muttered, putting my hands behind my back. "Old habits die hard." I walked around her, leaving her in the bathroom but dragging my embarrassment along with me.

+/+\+

There was a knock on the door just as everyone was getting ready to leave. All of us casted cautious glances at each other, prepared for the worst. I looked at Bo who gave me a slightly strained smile before heading towards the door. My nails extended at the same time I saw everyone else gripping their concealed weapons. We were ready for anything that was going to come through that door.

Well, almost anything.

"Hey, Babe!" _his _voice filled the air when Bo opened the door. Everyone else, but me, relaxed. Truthfully, I would've rather come face to face with the Garuda than Lambert.

"Ryan!" Bo sounded surprised, "I thought you weren't back in town until tomorrow!" He shrugged nonchalantly.

"Yeah, well, I caught the early flight back. Thought we could celebrate me getting the deal." His voice rumbled with sexual intentions. His hands grasped Bo's waist, a perverse smile playing across his face. A hot stab of jealousy hit me right in the chest. _My _hands had been there just hours before. _My _eyes had been looking into hers. And _my _lips had _certainly _been all over hers.

Bo was mine. Not his.

Dyson cleared his throat before Ryan could kiss the succubus and before I could do anything about it. The Loki looked up, surprised to see us all standing there, some of us more on edge than others. "Oh," Ryan said, hands still on Bo "I didn't know we had an audience." A low rumble escaped my chest before I could stop it. Thankfully, it seemed that only Dyson and Simba heard it. The manticore's tail wrapped around my ankle and Dyson gripped my arm. "Can I help you?" Ryan purposely ignored my presence.

"No." Hale said, "We just came over to fix a busted pipe."

"Ah, well, seems the pipes fixed now. So, if you don't mind…" he gestured to the door.

"Ryan…" Bo said quietly, almost scolding. This wasn't his house. Who the hell did he think he was? But I bit my tongue and stayed still.

"You don't have to ask us twice." Dyson grumbled, releasing me and heading for the door.

"Simba and I are coming too." Kenzi said grabbing her jacket. Simba sniffed in agreement, walking over to his friend.

"Kenzi," Bo said, taking a few steps towards her. "You don't have to go." She glanced at Ryan before looking back at Bo.

"No, really, I do. Call me when you're done playing 'bang the human-hater'." She stalked past Ryan, Simba at her heels. The rest of us were quick to follow, casting resentful looks Ryan's way. I didn't, though. I'd made my distain for him on countless occasions before that I just couldn't be bothered anymore. Instead, my eyes lingered on Bo's for a moment. She gave me a weak smile and a small 'bye, Lauren' before I walked out into the daylight.

Dyson and I drove home in silence for a few moments, the radio playing some old 50's rock. My mind wandered to my kiss with Bo by the fire. Every touch, every simple caress reeled through my head like a movie. Dyson's chuckle drew my attention. I glanced over at him. "what?"

"Nothin'. You're just such a boy."

"Am not."

"are too."

"How so?"

"You're sitting there day dreaming about your late night romp with Bo, with a cocky little smirk on your face." I flushed.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Old age getting to you Dyson?"

"Hey, I might be old, and totally hammered last night, but that doesn't mean my nose isn't working. I can literally _smell _Bo all over you and you all over her."

"We did sleep in the same bed."

"Unless you both had wet dreams last night, you had hanky panky time." I slapped his arm so hard he winced, but the grin on his face widened.

"Dyson!" He laughed at the flustered look on my face. "If you must know, yes I did kiss Bo last night. But it didn't get much past second base as soon as our favourite Dark Fae ass wipe popped back into her head."

"Ouch. I hate it when that happens. Bit of a cock block."

"When has _anyone ever_ cock blocked _you_?" He raised an eyebrow at me. My eyes widened.

"_Really? _I stopped you from getting any?"

"Once or twice."

"Damn."

"In all seriousness, a bit of advice coming your way. Maybe you should put some space between you and Bo." I blinked at him. He looked at me like an older brother would. "I mean, she needs time to choose, and you need to stop wallowing. Let yourself be happy. Find someone else to spend time with. I know it'll be hard, but you gotta give yourself some breathing room. Find a fling, a one night stand, just _something _that will let you let go for just a little while. Okay?"

I looked away from him.

"I'll take it under advisement."

+/+\+

A while later, we walked into our dwelling. Amelia smiled at me from where she sat reading a book as thick as a dictionary, but it was a weary, tired smile. One that said it had been a long night. A few feet from her, Tanner was asleep on the couch, his chest rising and falling with laboured breaths. Amelia put her book down and rested her hand on my arm, leading me towards the kitchen, far enough away from Tanner that we wouldn't wake him if we spoke quietly.

"How is he?" I asked and she looked down, her icy blue eyes full of worry.

"I don't know. He's got a fever but it's not like any kind of disease I've ever seen before. I mean, the only symptom he has is the fever itself. I've been having him take ice baths every few hours, giving him herbs to bring his temperature down, but it always shoots right back up." I looked over at the boy, feeling worry swallow me slowly. I sighed and looked at the ground. Small children like Tanner didn't handle high fevers well. I could remember countless times when I was a regular 'humans only' doctor that a mother or father had brought their child in with a fever of one hundred and four. I would always see panic in their eyes. When I worked at the clinic fresh out of med school, We were just locking up when a woman appeared at our door. I told her we were closed but she wouldn't leave. She said her daughter was in her car, that her little five year old daughter had strep throat and she just needed something to bring her fever down.

"She's suffering." She begged us "I know it's late and I know you're closing, but please. My baby needs _something." _So, I did what anyone else would do. I opened the door and gave her the medicine.

I looked at Tanner, feeling the hopelessness squeeze my chest. What do you do when medicinal practices aren't enough?

"Can you watch him for a little bit longer?" I asked, looking at her "I'll go see Trick, ask him for something. He owes me a couple favours." She hesitated before nodding.

"Uh, sure, Lauren, no problem. Dyson and I will watch him." I kneeled down by Tanner, watching him sleep. I stroked his head gently, careful not to wake him.

"Don't worry, Buddy." I whispered, "I'll get something to help you."

+/+\+

The Dal had been a bust. No one was there and I searched all over town to try and find Trick. Now the sun was down and I still didn't know where he was.

I walked down the street, reveling in the crisp night breeze whipped at the skin on my face and neck, offering relief from the insufferable heat from my trench coat. I silently cursed the past year or so of my life that had forced me to wear it so I wouldn't be chased off the streets or killed. I looked up at the moon, admiring the way it stood out from all the stars around it, big and bright. _I used to be like you. _I thought as I looked up at it. _I was like those stars before, then I became you, then I turned to the darkness in between. All of it happening so fast, so rapidly. I don't even know why I'm still here._ I reached up to my chest, feeling the long scars that still marred my skin, that were a painful reminder of just how delicate I was. I thought that, if I could hide from the Ash, I could hide from anything. _Except fate. _I muttered internally. _That sure as hell found me. _

Thoughts of Ryan flashed through my head along with the hot flash of rage that usually accompanied it. It wasn't fair. I'd spent the past two, almost three, months single and alone, mourning my loss, my mate. Within three weeks since I lost her, she was boning the dark fae dipshit. I kicked a crumpled can by my feet, watching it launch through the air and land nearly half a football field away in the middle of the barren street. I shook my head and leaned against the telephone pole, tapping the back of my head against it.

_Maybe I should try and meet someone else, _the thought floated into my head. _Just someone who wasn't Dyson or Bo or anyone I already know. Maybe someone who I could just spend time with, who didn't watch me like they were waiting for me to go on a homicidal rampage. Someone who didn't see me as a monster, the way I know the others looked at me. _I shook my head hard, trying to dislodge the hope. It wasn't safe. Fae wouldn't have anything to do with a half and humans would just about crap themselves. If they saw who I really was. _What _I really was.

I inhaled deeply, trying to cleanse my head. What I smelt made me stiffen and the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

fear.

I perked my ears up, listening for the slightest sound that could tip me off as to where it was coming from and what was happening. The scent of humans laced the streets to thickly it would be hard to track any activity that was happening right then.

The scrape of a switch blade opening caught my attention faster than a slap in the face and I jerked my head in the direction I just came. Thudding of boots and clicking of heels running made my legs turn back and follow it.

"Who's a pretty bird?" a gruff male voice cooed from about three blocks away.

"Get away from me!" a female voice yowled desperately, "Here! Take my money! Just please!"

"Guys! This isn't a good idea!" one of the male voices complained. "It's not right" the others ignored him.

"Aw, that's awful kind of you sugga." A different male voice said with mock sweetness. "But too bad it's not your money we want." Several other voices chuckled, the steps becoming careful now, planned. The world was just a blur around me as I pumped my legs faster and faster, my body screaming in protest. Short pants filled my lungs just enough to keep going. I heard the swoosh of disturbed air and a heavy thud.

"Shit!" the first voice yelp "did you really just hit me with your purse?"

"Lively, just how I like them."

I reached the alley they were in just in time to hear the desperate wail of the woman as one man grabbed her arms after knocking what looked like a can of mace from her hands. There was four of them, none of them much older than twenty six or so. They looked like frat boys, popped collars and duck-butt hair.

"Hey!" I barked, standing at the entrance of the alley way, chest heaving. They all turned and looked at me, obviously in a state of shock at being interrupted. "Get away from her!" it was just a moment or two before the throaty chuckle of gang filled the air.

"Listen, sweet cheeks." One said, eyeing me up and down as I walked up at a quick pace "if you want some of what we got going on, you're just gonna have to sit tight and wait your turn." They turned back to her and I caught his arm, flipping him over my body. He landed on his back, the air rushing from his lungs in a quick burst.

"I said leave her alone." I snarled at him as he tried to catch his breath. The other three abandoned the girl and ran at me. One grabbed my arm, twisting it behind my back as another readied himself in front of me, pulling his hand back, readying to drive it into my face.

My heightened reflexes allowed me to zone in on his hand as it launched towards me, see everything in slow motion. They allowed me to feel the breath of the kid behind me brush against the back of my neck. They also allowed me to duck my head just in time for the knuckle on his hand to just brush my forehead. His fist connected with the face of the guy behind me, snapping his head back. I flung my wings out, tearing the trench coat straight down the middle, and throwing the boy away from me. I landed a solid punch in the guy of the frat in front of me, forcing him to bend over. I drove my knee into his nose before tossing him sideway. I tore the remainder of the jacket from my body, and threw it on the ground before flipping the forth boy over my body when he reached me.

His eyes widened as they locked on my wings, just milliseconds before he reached me. With the attackers all laying on the ground stunned, I hurried to the girl on the ground. "Hey! Are you—" She turned around and a hot stream of lava hit me in the eyes. I reared up as the scorching of the mace made my eyes water and my nose run. Everything became a dark blur. I only barely caught the gleam of the switch blade being picked up.

"Tommy! What're you doing man! That thing'll kill you!"

"Shut up Jason." Tommy, the first one snapped. "No freak is going to chase me off." I rubbed my eyes harder, trying to see around the mace, trying to breathe through the cloud of it that was choking me.

The more I touched it, the more intense the pain got. But it was natural instinct to try and get rid of whatever was causing the pain.

"You see those wings! That's the Angel of Death, man! You can't kill it!"

"Quit with your religious babbling, Carlos."

"It's _not _babbling!"

"That's no Angel, Carlos. Look! She got maced! Can Angels get maced?" a strong hand grabbed my wrist as I dropped them from my face. He pulled me into him, crushing my arms against his chest. His breath brushed against my face. "You're no angel, now are you? You're just a little whore who doesn't know how to mind her own damn business." I stared at him as he touched the tip of the blade to my cheek.

"Hey! Asshole!" the girl behind me yelled, catching his attention. It gave me just enough time to slap his arm away from my face and land a solid knee to his groin.

He screamed, hand dropping the knife as he released me.

I looked up when he hit the ground. The three others were staring at me like deer in the headlights. I hesitated just a moment. "Grab him and get gone." I commanded, "I don't want to see you in this town ever again." The nodded, scrambling forwards, awkwardly yanking their fallen brother away. The only one who watched me with a kind of awe was the one who must've been Carlos, a look of regret on his face. He must've been the one who didn't want to do this.

"Thank you, Angel." He said just loud enough for me to hear. "For your forgiveness." I turned away, ignoring the statement and focusing on the girl watching me. Though I could barely see her through the haze of tears, I knew there was the same look on her face that the others had.

"You okay?" I asked finally. She nodded. I turned to walk away and fell to my knees, the shooting pain in my face knocking my legs out from under me.

She scrambled to her feet, brushing her pants off. Before kneeling beside me "Look," she said when I turned around "I didn't mean to hit you with pepper spray, I thought you were one of those goons for a second."

"Yeah, okay. Don't worry about it." I coughed as the vapours of the spray stirred in my lungs.

"At least let me take you back to my place, clean you up." I looked at her in surprise. "It's the least I could do after blinding you."

"So…you're not going to runaway screaming?"

"Why would I?"

"Um…" I flapped my wings nervously "I can think of two very big reasons. She appraised each wing before shrugging.

"I'm not going to say I know exactly what the hell is going on, but you _did _just save my life and aren't trying to kill me. I'd say that's a good reason to trust you. So, come on. I live just a block this way." When I hesitated to move, she looked at me, concern coming off her in waves. It was just a second before she gently took my hand in hers. "I got you." She said softly. I nodded, looping one arm over her shoulders and letting her help me to my feet.

I let her lead me away.

+/+\+

"Okay, so, apparently you _shouldn't _have rubbed at your face." She said after helping me to lay down on the couch in her apartment. I couldn't see what her home looked like, but I could feel the soft microfiber faux leather couch on the exposed parts of my skin. She let me borrow some sweat pants and destroy one of her shirts so I could cover myself. The clothes I had been wearing when she maced me got chucked. I heard her footsteps as I stared at the ceiling through swollen eyes.

I heard the sloshing of liquid as she poured something into a bowl. "But the website says that if we put whole milk on the affected areas it should relieve the burning." Her footsteps neared me and soon enough the soft thuds of her kneeling on the carpet reached my ears. I had to force myself not to jump when the damp cloth was laid across my eyes. I took a deep breath to calm myself down. There was a slightly awkward moment of silence that followed. I knew what she was going to ask, but I didn't want to say anything until she prompted me to.

"So, uh," she began nervously "how does that feel?" she asked, sitting by me on the couch. I sighed. The milk thing on my face was actually helping the burning already, slowly but surely. I could feel the swelling on my eyes going down as well.

"A lot better, actually. Thanks."

"Are you a demon?" she asked so bluntly and out of the blue it shocked me into silence. But it was just a few moments before I exploded into laughter. She stayed quiet as I laughed until my stomach cramped up. "Never mind then." She muttered, getting up to leave. I caught her arm and held it gently.

"No, no, I'm sorry. That question was just random." She sat back down. "No, I'm not a demon."

"Then what are you?"

"Would you believe me if I said human?"

"Nope. Not unless we were all growing wings and I didn't get the memo." I smiled at the humor in her voice, suddenly growing fond of this stranger.

"No, something just…happened to me. This ended up as the unfortunate side effect."

"What kind of thing?"

"It's not really something I can talk about."

"okay." My brows furrowed.

"Okay? You're not going to push or pry?"

"Do you want me to?"

"Well…no, but most people would."

"I'm not most people."

"I see."

"So, you have a significant other?" she asked, again, out of nowhere.

"You're just full of random questions, aren't you?"

"That one wasn't so random."

"How so?"

"I have a beautiful woman on my couch. I just want to make sure I'm not going to get my ass beat." I took a deep breath.

"That's an even more complicated question to answer."

"More complicated than the sprouting of wings?"

"Pretty much."

"Okay, then this I _got _to hear." I reached up, pulling the milk cloth from my eyes. My vision was blurry still, but the brunt of the stinging had stopped and the swelling had diminished enough for me to see shapes.

I could see her, kind of sort of now. I could at least tell that she had light caramel skin and long, curly hair. She sat facing me on the very edge of the couch. Though I couldn't see it, I knew her eyes were looking into my own. She took the cloth from my hand and dunked it into the bowl of milk by her feet, ringing it out a few times.

"I fell in love with this girl a year or so ago. Then, a few months ago, she got into…an accident, damaged her pretty bad. When she woke up, she didn't remember anything. She didn't remember me or anyone else."

"Ouch."

"Pretty much. So, after three weeks, she starts dating this other guy. And then, last night, a pipe bursts in her house. My friends and I go over to help and we kiss. Then, she tells me she needs time to decide what she wants; the guy or me."

"and she hasn't decided yet?"

"Nope."

"That's shitty."

"Pretty much." She carefully wiped my face with the cloth, leaving a soothing path wherever it touched.

"So, you're single is what you're saying." I chuckled, shaking my head.

"Is this how you pick up women? You mace them while they try to save you and then bring them home?" she giggled.

"Every girl has her tricks." She slid her arm under me. "Come on, we have to go rinse the oil from your skin now."

"Awesome." I groaned as she pulled me to my feet, helping me towards the kitchen. My wings dragged across the ground, my mind too preoccupied to keep them tight in.

"Not to sound creepy or anything," she grunted as she righted me after I stumbled. "But I don't think you're in any condition to go home."

"I'm not drunk, I'm blind."

"You can't walk three steps without someone having to drag your ass forwards."

"That's why they made cars."

"I seriously don't feel comfortable letting you leave until I know you'll be okay." I held my sarcastic comment after noting the genuine concern in her voice. I took a deep breath as she steadied me against the counter and turned on the tap.

"Okay," I yielded. "But I'd feel a little weird if I stayed at your house overnight and didn't even know your name." I raised my right hand towards where she stood on my left. "Lauren." She took it without hesitation, her grip firm, but finger soft and elegant.

"Nadia

**Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but I wrote this for you, so review it maybe?**


	8. Catalyst

**Sorry I was gone so long. I was having one of those moments when I question myself about where the story could go. I didn't know if I wanted this chapter to go like this, so I had to take time and see if it would work. I still don't know, but I've decided to throw caution to the wind and see which way it lands. Hopefully I don't screw myself over completely. Hopefully.**

**I don't know why I like this Nadia so much…maybe its because she was always so weird because of the Garuda in the show that, having the opportunity to create what I think she **_**was **_**like, makes me like her more. Or it could be that I'm tired of shit kicking Lauren all over the place and I like happy Lauren. Honestly, I was thinking about not having her in it, but then the scene where they meet popped into my head and I couldn't help myself.**

_I ran as fast as my legs would carry me. The world was a dark blur as I pushed my legs faster, my white dress whipping out behind me. The long grass of the field lashed at my legs and my bare arms. My heart hammered in my ears, my pulse quickening. My mind had been counting subconsciously. It was going to happen again. I knew it. The explosion erupted just a foot from me, sending me flying through the air. I skidded on my side for four feet before coming to a stop and scrambling back to my feet. _

_I had to keep moving, every second lost was one more second until the next explosion. I ran full out, my legs growing numb from the constant exertion. That's when I saw them._

_Everyone._

_Kenzi appeared to my right, dressed in a pure white dress that billowed in the strong wind. I tried to yell at her to run, but I had no voice. I grabbed her arm and pulled, but it was like trying to move a marble statue. She didn't budge. Her eyes stared at me, an accusatory glint in their lifelessness. When the next explosion hit, it was just a couple feet away from us. The goth didn't so much as flinch as I ducked away. So I turned around and ran, pushing myself faster. Next was Dyson, dressed in all white as well. I kept running, not stopping. His eyes held the same look that Kenzi's did. The next was Trick, then Amelia, Hale, Simba, and finally, Bo and Ryan, standing right in front of me, forcing me to stop._

_I fell face first into the dirt before them. My ribs ached and I felt the blood trickling from scrapes across my cheek. I coughed on the ground for a few moments, feeling my muscles trying to get up. I raised my head in time to see the two of them lock lips, Ryan dressed in a white tuxedo and Bo in a wedding dress. _

"_No," I whispered, though my voice didn't make a single sound. I slammed my hand into the ground, an explosion erupting just behind them, sending dirt and debris flying into my face, pelting me painfully. I pushed myself to my feet, watching as Bo and Ryan kissed on their wedding day. The day my world exploded. A fire ball erupted from the ground behind me, scorching my back. I just didn't care anymore. I didn't care about the dirt smudged on my face or under my nails. I didn't care about the blood trickling down my cheek. Or about the eyes staring at me. _

I fought for you._ I thought, watching them look at each other with loving eyes_. I fought for you everyday since you came back. I jumped through hoops and protected you. Yet it will never be enough, will it? You'll always choose someone else. You'll never want me. You'll always pick him_. I spat the blood from my mouth, watching it glisten in the light of another explosion erupting right in front of me. _

_I turned back around, coming face to face with everyone else, their eyes still glassy, lifeless. They all stared at me, but didn't seem to actually _see _me. I stared at them, my dress tattered and smudged with dirt. _

"_This is what you have waiting for you, Lauren." Bo's voice rang clear through the air. I turned around, coming face to face with the Bo from my dream. The Old One wearing her skin. Ryan stared after her lovingly as she walked towards me. I didn't show her any emotion. "You've just got hate waiting for you. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon." She brushed the tossed locks of hair from my face. "But, if you let go…" she whispered softly, cupping my cheeks gently in her hands. "You will be loved by all. In the new kingdom, you can stand at His side, with Bo as your beautiful bride." I stared at her for a moment. _

_I_'d rather you kill me now than ever be your puppet, you disgusting monster._ She narrowed her eyes at me, her hand clenching my wrist so tightly I thought she'd break it. I fell to my knees, the pain so strong I could barely keep myself from passing out. _

"_Then you only have yourself to blame, you pathetic human, as your world collapses around you. Because the second I gain access to you in my realm…you'll be begging me to kill you." She reached to her hip, drawing a sword from the sheath there. She brought her foot up under my chin, clicking my teeth together, sending tremors through my skull that sent me onto my back. I looked up as she drew it and held it high above her head. _

_It was then that a sword with a blade as dark as night clashed with hers and threw her back. The dark figure stood in front of me, sword clenched tightly in its hand. I blinked at the figure in a daze, only barely registering the look of rage on the Old One's face._

_The next explosion was right under me._

I jarred upwards on the bed, eyes darting around the dark room, my chest rising and falling rapidly, I couldn't think, couldn't breathe. I gasped in desperate breaths, trying to find something to ground me in reality. When I tried to get up, I was surprised to find an arm wrapped around my waist, a hand on my forehead, rocking me back and forth gently. "Shh, Lauren, you're okay. I got you." Nadia whispered gently, though the fear in her voice was obvious. The air in my lungs left in one steady stream as I went limp in her arms, my fingers loosely grasping her forearm. "I got you." She said again as she held me against her. I whimpered softly as she pulled her fingers through my hair soothingly.

I had taken her bed after her insistence, rather her refusal to let me take the couch without quote 'dueling' her for it. Needless to say I gave up quickly. I was surprised to find her here when I woke up, holding me. I must've woken her up which was not completely surprising; as my nightmares became worse and worse, it began to affect my sleep paralysis. I'd thrash and cry out in the middle of the night, often waking up Dyson on a bad night.

But we sat there in the dark of her bedroom for what felt like hours in a deafening silence. She held me, leaning against the headboard and me laying between her legs, my back against her front. I sniffled quietly. She kissed the top of my head, resting her forehead on it. "You okay?" she asked softly and I nodded, wiping my eyes. "Do you have nightmares…a lot?" Instead of answering, I pulled away from her. She didn't try to stop me, just watched me as I rubbed my eyes and wiped my nose.

I felt pathetic. Like some pity party that was just dying for some attention. I didn't like drawing attention to myself. I used to be very good at being the invisible girl. The one no one knew was there until she wasn't. It was better that way. Easier. Look at what drawing attention to myself had brought me; my life was in ruins and now this stranger was holding me in her bedroom as I cried like an infant because of a stupid nightmare.

Suddenly, I didn't want to be seen at all least of all by Nadia. I didn't want her to feel sorry for me. _I _didn't want to feel sorry for me. So, I did what I'd been doing forever; I closed up and pushed her away.

"Sorry I woke you up, Nadia." I said, standing up and moving to walk away.

"Lauren." Her voice alone stopped me. I turned around slowly, trying to compose a happy look on my face. "Look, I know this isn't going to help with my creep level or anything," she began, sitting up. "But, if you want me to hold you as you fall asleep, I will."

"That's a strange offer." She shrugged.

"Sometimes we all just need to be comforted by someone, doesn't matter who it is. Plus, I think we've already established I'm not some weird sex fiend and you're not a murderous individual. It should be okay." I nodded stiffly. "And something tells me no one has held you in a long, long time." The tears came back with a vengeance, pouring down my face before I had the chance to stop them. Instantly, the other woman's warm arms encircled me as she left the bed.

She held me there, in the soft embrace that soothed the jagged edges of my broken heart. She didn't want anything from me. She was just giving. She held me like we'd known each other for forever. And, oddly, it didn't feel weird. It wasn't uncomfortable or awkward. It felt good. She pulled her fingers through my hair, rocking us back and forth slowly. "You're safe here, Lauren." She whispered softly, holding me tighter. I let her lead me back to the bed, help me under the comforter and I laid my head on her chest, her arms wound around my waist, brushing the feathers on my wings. I draped my arm over her waist, taking solace in the feeling of warm, caring arms around me. "You're safe."

_**Bo**_

I walked to Dyson and Lauren's door and knocked three times. I wanted to see how Lauren was doing. I felt terrible about the way we'd left things the day before. I had wanted to talk to her more before Ryan came back. I was more than surprised when he showed up a day early. I closed my eyes and shook my head. The look on Lauren's face when Ryan came back was haunting. But I told her I needed time to choose, right? To decide? So, she could at least understand that I wasn't trying to hurt her.

I mean, I knew what Lauren and I had now. That we were beyond serious before the incident. But I didn't know if I was ready for that. Old Bo was, but I didn't remember anything about who I was before. Maybe I had been ready for that kind of commitment once upon a time. Now? I didn't know.

Anyway, Lauren agreed to give me time.

"_Hi." I said, walking into the kitchen where Lauren was cooking pancakes for everyone. It was still reasonably early in the morning and everyone else was still asleep. _

"_Hi." She said, not turned around to look at me, too busy with what she was doing. She poured the batter onto the hot pan with precision. Very doctor like. "You hungry?" _

"_Yeah." I murmured, taken slightly off guard by her sudden distance. "Starving."_

"_Good." She murmured, "because I made _waaaay _too much batter. Could you get the maple syrup? It's in the far left cupboard." I blinked but did as I was told. How did I not know where the syrup was and she did? I placed the syrup on the island and rasped my fingernails on the counter top. "Sleep well?" she asked, flipping her pancakes over. The warm smell and delicious sizzle filled the air, making my mouth water. _

"_Yeah, actually I did. You?" She shrugged._

"_Yup." That weird, tense silence took over the room. She loaded the freshly made pancakes onto a plate and placed them in front of me. She turned around and made the next batch as I grabbed some cutlery and began eating, trying to think about how to word what I wanted to say. "Look, Bo, I understand that what happened by the fire was a spur of the moment deal. That you're still with Ryan and you don't want me to feel bad or hurt. I get it, okay? Take your time. It's not like I'm going anywhere." I winced at the begrudging tone of her voice. The tone that said she wished she _could _go anywhere but here._

_With that, I turned towards the stairs. "I'm going to get dressed." I mumbled. _

_She didn't acknowledge me._

I took a breath as the door opened.

"Lauren, I was wondering when—" Dyson stopped talking when he saw it was me at the door. His eyes widened in surprise. "Bo?"

"Hi, Dyson."

"Is Lauren with you?"

"No, I just came by to see her actually. Where'd she go?" He shook his head, trying to think.

"She called last night, said she got into some trouble, couldn't make it home." My pulse quickened.

"What kind of trouble? Is she hurt?" He put his hand out, trying to get me to relax.

"She's fine. Apparently got maced, didn't want to come home with the vapours still on her. She was worried about what it would do to Tanner." He opened the door completely, allowing me to come in.

"Oh god." I breathed, seeing the boy on the bed. Three IVs were hooked into his arms, each dripping different liquids into his veins. I took a step in, watching as the other shifter walked into the living area. She carried a bowl of soup with her, setting it down on the coffee table. She gently pushed the boy's long hair from his face.

"Hey, Tanner," she said softly, gently stirring the child from his slumber. "You have to eat something now, okay?" he blinked at her, his eyes barely opening before he shook his head. His cheeks looked sunken in, like he hadn't eaten much of anything in days.

"What's wrong with him?" I asked Dyson who sighed, the look of exhaustion appearing on his weary features.

"We don't know. He has a fever but nothing else other than a lack of appetite. We can't find a way to bring it down and his body is burning through its nutrients faster than he's taking it in."

"Where _is _Lauren? I thought she didn't have a place to stay other than here?" The tapping of shoes making their way quickly towards the door cut off whatever Dyson had been going to say. Instead, Lauren pushed through us both, a different trench coat on than the one she usually wore.

To my surprise, another woman followed her through the door. Her skin was warm, caramelly. Her long hair was tied back in a braid, a black leather jacket covered her torso and skinny jeans accentuated her long legs. A very attractive woman indeed. I blanked at her as she passed me.

Did Lauren spend the night at another woman's home?

"Tanner?" Lauren said carefully as she yanked off the coat and kneeled down beside the boy, gently stroking his cheek. "Tanner, how're you doing, buddy?" He looked at her for a moment from under the blankets and furs laid over him to keep him from shivering before grasping her hand and pulling it underneath the covers with him. He pressed her knuckles to his lips and closed his eyes for a moment. The other woman that followed her looked around nervously.

Amelia and Dyson eyed her cautiously, I was still a little punch drunk.

_Another woman?_

"Where were you last night?" the boy asked barely above a whisper. Lauren looked back at the woman.

"I was helping out a friend of mine. I got in a little bit of trouble, I didn't want to come home until I got cleaned up." Tanner opened his eyes, blinking up at the brunette.

"Who's that?" He asked and she didn't hesitate to kneel down beside the blonde.

"I'm the friend that your sister was helping out. I'm Nadia." He slid his free hand out from under the blankets.

"Tanner Lewis." His voice held an heir of professionalism that made everyone chuckle. Nadia took it and shook it carefully, a mock seriousness on her face.

"Nice to meet you, Tanner." Amelia cleared her throat, motioning to Lauren that they needed to talk. The winged woman looked at her brother once more before leaning in to kiss his forehead.

"I'll be right back, buddy." She stood up and we all met in the kitchen. Nadia stayed with Tanner.

"Are you nuts?" Amelia hissed, looked over Lauren's shoulder at Nadia. "Why would you bring a human in on this?" Lauren crossed her arms over her chest, a standoffish edge to her stance.

"Last time I check, Amelia, I'm human too. Or at least half human. Besides, she drove me here. I tried to convince her to go home or stay in the car. She said she didn't want me to be alone."

"You're not alone." I said, wincing at the sharp edge to my voice that I tried to keep out. She turned her eyes on me, a serious glint in their dark depths. "What I mean is—"

"What she means is that we're here for you, Lauren. And Tanner. It's not okay for you to bring a human into this conflict as well." Dyson interjected, saving my ass. Lauren shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Look," she said quietly, trying to control her voice. "I told her nothing. She doesn't know about the fae or about what happened to me, I've kept her in the dark and she hasn't pushed the issue."

The shifters shook their heads. Tanner giggled and we all looked over to see Nadia pulling a quarter out from behind his ear. I could feel Lauren's emotions coming off her in waves. Silent adoration and contentment. I couldn't tell if it was because of Tanner's sudden happiness or the woman making him happy. I bristled at the thought of it being the latter.

_Who does she think she is? _I thought, feeling my anger rising. _Stealing away into our lives like this. Getting the kid's hopes up. If she thinks—_ I stopped my train of thought as Lauren turned and looked at me. The smoldering look in her eyes dared me to say my thoughts out loud, dared me to challenge her and her judgement. They dared me to raise my voice against the woman who was making her brother happy. I looked away to the floor, shame flooding me and making my cheeks turn red.

"Fine." Amelia said, the happiness of the youngster softening her previously hard features. "She can stay. But I suggest you keep an eye on the human, who knows what kind of trouble she'll get herself into now." Lauren bowed her head in submission before Amelia walked back into the kitchen. I turned around to get myself a glass of water. A strong hand caught my arm and Lauren's breath brushed against my ear.

"Outside. Now. We need to talk." I swallowed hard as she let go and her footsteps resounded, heading towards the door. I felt like a kid at a party about to get yelled at by their parent away from everyone else. I didn't want to go have a chat with Lauren. But, as I turned around and saw her disappear, I rubbed my hands on my pants nervously.

Shit.

"What is your damage?" she demanded once I joined her, the fury in her eyes almost overwhelming. I put on a bitch face and glared at her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Those thoughts going through your head when I was getting chewed out by Amelia. Who the hell do you think you are, Bo?"

"I'm not the one who dragged a human into the middle of a battlefield!"

"Oh really, that's all this is about? You're so concerned about Nadia?"

"Frankly, I feel sorry she's put in the middle of this. What were you doing talking to her anyway? Don't you have to keep what you are a secret?"

"Oh, okay Bo, I'm sorry. Next time I'll mind my own business and walk away as she gets gang raped, how does that sound?" I blinked at her, regret beginning to form in my stomach. Oh, I really stepped in it this time.

"I didn't know—"

"Exactly, Bo, you didn't know and yet you start throwing your accusations around like you have all the fact you need. You heard I stayed at another person's house and you automatically think I slept with her."

"I didn't say—"

"I heard your thoughts earlier." She stated simply, but the fire in her eyes hadn't died down at all. "Here's the cold hard truth Bo. Do I like Nadia? Yes, she's a wonderful person. She's the first person who's made me feel like an _actual _person in a long, long time. Not like some sideshow freak that even the circus tossed out. She doesn't judge me, she makes me laugh and feel like I'm worth _something_ as a human being than as the Guardian." She glared into my eyes and I couldn't pull mine away from the stare, the furious, hurt glare. "You're not the only one who gets to be happy."

"I don't think that—"

"Yes you do!" She snapped, making me wince. "The second someone else looks my way or I look their way you jump on the offensive and act like I've done something wrong. You and I are _not _together, Bo!" She said, taking a few seconds to calm herself down against before continuing. Her eyes looked into mine, now softer, sadder, but still as intense. "You've made that painfully clear."

"Lauren—"

"No. From now on, you stay out of my life and keep your nose out of my business. What you do with Lambert is none of my business, what I do with Nadia is none of yours." With that, she turned around and walked back into her home.

_Fine. _I snapped mentally, knowing she would hear me. I couldn't seem to find my non-mental voice. _I understand. Go and do your own thing Lauren. I don't care._

I walked back into the house, not even glancing her way.

+/+\+

"Hi," a voice made me look up from the book I was reading on Dyson's couch. Nadia stood in front of me, looking nervous, like she was talking to a celebrity. "You're Bo, right?"

"Yeah, Hi. You're Nadia right?" she nodded, wringing her hands. We got stuck in an awkward silence until she pointed to the seat beside me.

"May I?"

"Oh. Oh! Yeah, sure." I dropped my feet down from the table, allowing her to maneuver past me and sit down. I closed my book and placed it on the table.

"I didn't know what to expect when Lauren asked me to drive her here." She said, eyes locked on the doctor laying behind her brother on the couch, arms wrapped around him, the blankets covering them both. Lauren's massive wings poked out up the back of the couch. "Honestly, it's a little intimidating."

"Intimidating?" She nodded

"Yeah. Everyone here is so good looking I feel like I walked into an Abercrombie commercial." Despite my disliking for the woman sitting next to me, I couldn't keep the smile off my face at her joke.

"Yeah, I kind of feel like that too sometimes, though sometimes it's like the twilight zone."

"I get that." I looked at her, shocked. Did Lauren say something and lie to us about it? Keep it cool, keep it cool.

"You do?" She nodded, a smile turning up her lips.

"Yeah. My house growing up was the weirdest place. If anything could happen, it would." I sighed mentally. Thank god. "I remember this one time I was making a salad wrap in the kitchen and, as my mom was walking by, I put the tongs down and they flipped out of the bowl and cracked her in the toes."

"Damn." I chuckled along with her.

"Yeah. She didn't think it was as funny as I did."

There was another pause of silence, this one not completely uncomfortable. I cleared my throat.

"So, did Lauren spend the night at your place?" she huffed a laugh before nodding.

"It was the least I could've done after I pepper sprayed her in the face."

"Jeez."

"Pretty much. But she's a really sweet person. You'd have to be to not hate someone for doing that." She scratched the back of her neck, eyes locked on the blonde, snoozing with her brother. "But damn, she's really beautiful." I looked at her for a second, seeing the affection in her eyes, feeling her aura burn with subtle desire. I saw the slight curve of her lips as she appraised the blonde. There was no apology in her expression at having said something so personal in front of someone else. In front of me.

_She doesn't care. _I realized, mixed feelings of admiration in her confidence and an inkling of jealously stirred in me. _She says what she feels. She's honest and doesn't give a damn if anyone looks down on her. _

I looked over at Lauren again, noticing that the bags and dark circles that were around her eyes were less evident than they had been the last time I saw her. _She must've finally gotten some sleep. _That thought didn't help with my jealousy. I bristled slightly but kept myself in check.

"Yeah." I said quietly, hoping to hide the edge in my voice "she certainly is."

_**Lauren**_

"So, you have my number, if you need anything?" I asked and Nadia nodded, a small smile on her lips. I drove back with her to her apartment just as soon as night had fallen. I wanted to make sure she got home safe. I had a weird feeling that something was going to happen. I didn't want to let her go home alone.

"Yeah. Thank you Lauren, for everything." I shook my head.

"You don't have to thank me, Nadia. I'm the one who should be thanking _you. _It's been so long since anyone's actually made me feel less like a sideshow freak." She shook her head.

"You're too pretty to be a sideshow freak." I rolled my eyes and she gave me a smirk before turning and opening her door. She paused in the doorway. "G'night, Lauren. Don't be a stranger." She winked at me and I rolled my eyes.

"Night Nadia." With a giddy, teenage girl smile, she disappeared into the dark apartment.

It wasn't until I left her apartment and was flying through the humid night air that my phone rang in my jean pocket. I dug into it, praying to god I wouldn't drop it this high up. I pulled out the cell and blinked a few times at the call display. "Nadia?" I asked to no one, staring at the number. It had been just less than an hour since I'd left her home. What could she need now?

I pressed it to my ear. "Nadia? How long can you go without—"

"Get away from me!" I heard her scream, the thudding of feet hitting a body echoed behind her words. My heart stopped cold in my chest.

"Nadia?"

"You think just because that fucking Half saved your ass before that you'd be safe?" the coldness spreading through me suddenly erupted in a flash of hot fury. I knew that voice. It was hard to forget.

"_You're no Angel, now are you? You're just a little whore who doesn't know how to mind her own damn business." _

"I got news for you, Bird," his voice panted, the struggle continued in the background. "You're mine. No freak will ever be able to save you now."

"Nadia!" I cried into the receiver.

"_LAUREN!" _The phone went dead with her scream. I flipped around so fast I nearly lost my air balance and fell. I had to get there. To her. She was in danger. If I didn't get there fast enough—

_If he so much as touches her…_ I thought, feeling my skin begin to prickle, my gums ache. The dark world around me sudden became as bright as day as my eyes changed. The fear in my heart quickly turned to rage, flooding my limbs with power. With strength. A feeling that, had I been in the right state of mind, would have scared me to death. Adrenaline flooded my veins. _I will tear him limb from limb while his hearts still beating. I will carve out his heart as he watches and shred it before his eyes. I will make him feel pain so unimaginable that he will beg me to end his pathetic existence. And, when he does, I'll leave him to bleed out in the street. _I pumped my wings harder, forcing myself to move faster than I had before.

He would feel my wrath.

He wouldn't soon forget it.

**So…you guys just waited a bajillion years for another cliffhanger. But, are you actually surprised? No, no you're not. Because you were ready with the cliffhanger survival pack because you're all classy, classy people. But, were you prepared with the Cliffhanger fall parachute? No, because I just made that up now. But, for a review or two, you can have one of these handy dandy parachutes with 'I hate you, madam writer' embroidered on the top. **

**Get them before they get gone.**


	9. The Offer

**Don't blame me. Blame school. High school + Graduation = very angry/exhausted writer. The preparation for grad is sucking away all my brain capacity which is why I haven't updated in such a long time. And I'm sorry. But, if you don't hate me already, maybe this chapter will help with the process.**

**CHAPTER NINE**

_**Nadia**_

I scrambled back into my bathroom, shutting the door behind me and locking it before scrambling into the bathtub. My cellphone was nothing more than electronic rubble on the other side of the barrier. The guy had crushed it in his hand like it was nothing. I pulled my knees to my chest as the thudding against the door got louder and louder, the hinges beginning to give out under the force. I scrambled for a weapon; something, anything I could use to defend myself against whatever the h

ell this guy was. I reached around to the toilet, lifting the lid off the tank. I pushed myself UP, forcing myself to focus on getting my feet under me. I clenched the porcelain weapon tightly in my hands, ready to swing it with all my strength. I could do this. Lauren was on her way.

Please let Lauren be on her way.

The door burst open and there he stood, a frat-tastic as he had been the first night he and his goons attacked me. There was just one thing different about him.

His eyes were glowing a brilliant blue. I swallowed, trying to find some metaphorical lady-balls. I clenched the lid tighter.

My entire body tensed. "I'm not letting you anywhere near me you creep!" he chuckled darkly, leaning against the doorframe.

"You think that chunk of glass is going to hurt me?"

"I dunno, why don't we find out?" I leapt out of the bathtub and charged full force at him. I swung the lid for his head and he caught it mid swing before grabbing my throat and throwing me back out into my bedroom. "Shit!" I cursed, scrambling back and to my feet. "listen buddy! My dad was in the army, he taught me a thing or two about self-defence. You don't know what I got up my sleeves!" He moved to grab my arm and I deflected the best I could, landing a punch across his face. Unfortunately, it felt like I punched a cinderblock. I groaned, pulling my hand into my body. My wrist was definitely sprained. "what the hell is your face filled with?! Cement!? Jesus!" He grabbed my wrist and threw me back onto the bed. He was on me before I could move. His fingers clenched around my throat as his other hand moved to his belt.

"not so tough now, are you?"

"I swear to god," I choked out around his hand, my heart hammering so hard I was sure he could hear it. "I'll kill you. I'll kill you, you blue eyed, duck butt, collar popping fratboy freak!"

"We'll see just how able you are after we have our fun here." I threw my body this way and that, trying to pull free.

"I'll castrate you! Whatever hope of having little douchy babies—"

"Oh shut up!" he clamped his hand over my mouth just as my window shattered, a sharp burst of cold air blasted through my room. The hand was off my mouth, the asshole was flying backwards, crashing into my dresser, shattering it like glass. A weight was above my head on the bed. I looked up, finding Lauren looking down at me. Except, it wasn't Lauren.

At least not the Lauren I knew.

Long, black spikes stuck out of her arms, sharp claws brushed my forehead gently as she pushed the hair from my face.

"You!" the guy snarled, pushing himself up from the remnants of my dresser.

"I told you to leave." Lauren snarled, her canine teeth extended slightly, making her look like a lion with her main of rumpled blonde hair. I may have been wrong, but it sounded almost like someone else had echoed what she said.

"You stupid half! I'm going to make a coat from your pelt!" He lunged forwards and Lauren launched at him, meeting him halfway and latching onto his chest. Her fingers grasped his shoulders, feet pressed in the arrow of his ribs. They swung around and Lauren kicked him through the door. I scrambled to my feet and chased after them. He bounced off the couch and swung for Lauren's head. His fist connected, but it didn't stun Lauren for too long. He swung again and she grabbed his wrist, pulling him into her and jamming her knee into his stomach before shoving him into the fridge. He rolled towards the counter, grabbing a knife from the rack.

Lauren stopped, eyeing him cautiously, her eyes glowing a deep red in the dark of my apartment. A low, rumbling growl seeped from her chest as blood trickled from her nose. "what?" he sneered "big bad putty-tat afraid of an itty bitty knife?" she snarled in frustration. He smirked before lunging towards her with it. She side stepped, catching his wrist and bicep. She held it completely still as she drove her knee up through his elbow. A loud, sickening snap echoed through my apartment as his arm bent the wrong way. He let out a shriek of agony before dropping the knife to the ground.

While they were fighting, I was scrambling for a weapon of my own to help Lauren out. I'd be damned if I sat by like the damsel in distress while I watched Lauren take care of my problem, even if she did scare the crap out of me at that moment. I racked my brain for anything I had stashed away. Mace? No, left it in the alley. Taser? Out of charges. Knife? Too close to the fight. I looked around, beginning to panic. There had to be something!

_Ah ha! _

I looked at my mantel, on top rested a slingshot. It had been more of a joke between my sister and I than anything else. She was a cop and I was always bugging her to take me to a firing rang and let me shoot her gun. Then I asked for a gun for Christmas. She gave me a slingshot. A hunting slingshot, might I just add. I didn't even know they made hunting sling shots. Though a gun would've worked better in this situation, the sling shot would do. I ran to the mantel and grabbed the projectile launcher, digging into the vase filled with decorative marbles sitting on the opposite end. I slid my arm into the brace bar and loaded the first marble into the leather pocket and pulled back on the elastic. I bit my lip as my wrist reminded me it was sprained.

Then I realised I hadn't fired a sling shot since I was ten and didn't exactly remember how the aim worked. Nevertheless, I waited until they moved so I could get a good shot. He grasped the meat tenderizer on the counter and hit her upside the head. The wooden mallet snapped as it hit her, but she stumbled back all the same, giving me an opening. So, I let go of the marble and watched as the little glass ball hit him in the side of the head. He gave a yelp as he touched the impact zone. He looked at me. "You little shit!" I fired another marble, hitting him square in the forehead.

Lauren charged him like a linebacker, ramming him into the wall. She reared up and delivered a swift uppercut to his chin. She sunk her claws into his chest, ripping a shriek from his throat. Lauren threw him towards the door; he stumbled and staggered before falling flat out in the hall. She was on him in a second. I dropped the sing shot and ran to the door.

She had her fingers wrapped around his throat, blood seeping around her claws as she delivered punch after punch to his face. He was a bloody mess as I wrapped my arm around Lauren's neck, locking it there with my other hand as I dragged her back off him. "Lauren! Lauren, stop! Don't kill him!" She whirled on me, grabbing me by the throat and pinning me to the door. Her eyes were glowing a vibrant red, lips pulling away from her extended teeth. She looked wild, consumed by some primal instinct.

Something out of a nightmare.

I glanced out of the corner of my eye as the guy stumbled to his feet and scurried to the elevator. I gripped her wrist tightly, swallowing painfully around her strong fingers. "Lauren" I croaked, only to be met with a snarl that sounded surprisingly like a lion's. "Lauren, you're hurting me." she didn't ease up. "Look at me! It's Nadia! Remember? I maced your face! You saved me from that guy you just beat the living shit out of!" I reached my hands away from hers, instead cupping her face in both hands, running my thumbs over her cheek bones. It was a last ditch effort to calm her down. If it didn't work, she'd strangle me to death. "Lauren…Lauren please."

To my surprise, her eyes slowly faded to their deep brown colour. Her teeth retracted, the spikes sunk back into her skin. The claws prickling the side of my neck slowly disappeared. She dropped me, blinking like she'd just been snapped out of a daze. "Nadia?" she mumbled, squinting at me as I rubbed my throat. "Oh god, Nadia, I am so, so sorry. I didn't—I mean—I don't— I didn't know what I was doing. I'm sorry. I'll…"she looked around my fairly destroyed apartment. "I'll fix this, I'll pay for damages. I'm so sorry—" for whatever reason, I found myself lurching towards her. My arms flung around her neck and lips crushed to hers. She stiffened for a moment, almost as surprised as I was.

Slowly, she relaxed, wrapping her arms around me as well. It was a slow, almost timid kiss that quickly erupted like a volcano. I turned us, pushing her against the wall and pressing my body flush against hers. I slid my hands over her shoulders and down to her waist. It wasn't until my fingers slipped under her shirt that I felt her tear brush my cheek. I pulled back and she bowed her head, trying to hide the droplet running down her face. "Lauren…" I whispered, gently lifting her head so she'd look at me. "I'm sorry. We don't have to do anything if you don't want to." She placed her hand over mine and held it firmer against her face.

"I do want to. I _want _this. But…"

"But it's too soon."

"No." her answer surprised me as she pulled my hand from her face and walked around me. I turned, leaning back against the wall where she had been a moment before. She pressed her hand to her forehead. "I just…why do I feel so guilty about this? Why do I feel like I'm doing something wrong?"

"Because you still care about her. About Bo, I mean."

"But why should I? She doesn't care about _me. _I'm just territory to her now. She only cares if someone else moves in on me."

"The heart wants what the heart wants, Lauren. Love is blind but it's also really, really stupid." She pressed her hand to her forehead.

Admittedly, yeah, it hurt like shit to be muff cuffed by someone who was causing Lauren so much pain. To have to sit by and watch while the blonde was torn up inside. To not be able do or say anything to make her feel better or to ease her suffering. I'd only known this woman for not even two days and I feel like I'd known her forever. It killed me to watch her right then. It also killed me to defend her feelings for the incredibly attractive woman that was hurting her. I wanted Lauren more than I'd wanted anyone else in my entire life. So much it scared me. The kiss still made my lips tingle and my heart raced just thinking about it.

_I shouldn't have kissed her. _the thought passed through me and it was like a light bulb went on in my head. _It was a mistake. I've only known her for a short time. She is floating in some weird post relationship thing…I watched her take down some weird, supernatural freak in my kitchen. It was the adrenaline, it was the fear for my own life that made me want to live. That spurred me to throw myself at her. _All the reasons I shouldn't have done it passed through my head rapid fire. I rubbed my neck, but kept quiet, giving her a chance to think. I looked at my shoes, at the broken stuff on the floor. Then, bare feet.

Her bare feet.

I looked up and was met with her deep brown eyes. "The heart wants what the heart wants?" she whispered and I nodded.

"Yeah." Her hands cupped my face, thumb running over my cheek bone. She leaned in slowly, touching her lips to mine in a kiss so soft it took me a second to figure out that it had actually happened. "Lauren," I whispered, wanting to preserve the moment "are you sure?"

"Yes. Whatever is going on in here" she touched her hand to her heart "you make it hurt less. And I want to be _with you._ At least tonight." I nodded, in complete aw of the creature in front of me.

"You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." She leaned in again. This time, there was no mistaking that she was kissing me. Her fingers slid under my jacket and pushed it from my shoulders, letting it fall to the ground. Her fingers gripped the front of her shirt tightly in preparation to rip it off completely. I grabbed her hands, stopping her. "No." I said through a glorious daze. "No more violence tonight."

"But it's the easiest way to get it off." She moved to rip it again and I stopped her.

"Let me." grabbed the hem of her shirt and slowly untied the knots at the bottom so I could pull it up over her head. We went slow. "There's no rush tonight, Lauren. There is just you and me. The rest of the world and whatever else is looking for you can wait." There was no rush. Even as we stumbled back to the bedroom, me backing her onto the bed, crawling over her, we took our time.

But that didn't mean that passion didn't ignite every touch like a match to gasoline. That each kiss didn't make fireworks explode inside.

She sat up with me in her lap, her hands pulling me tight against her in every way. She planted soft kisses on my collar bone. "Thank you Nadia." She whispered against my skin before looking up at me. "For everything." I couldn't help but smile before kissing her again.

"Anytime."

+/+\+

"_Really, Lauren." _A voice scoffed from the dark.I blinked groggily, feeling Nadia's warm body under mine. I looked up at the woman, seeing her peaceful face. She was still asleep. I brushed my nose against her stomach affectionately before raising my head to scan the room. After a few brief moments, I felt my eyes change and the room become as bright as day. Still, I saw nothing. I pushed myself up, one hand on either side of the sleeping woman beneath me. _"A random hook up? I didn't think that was your style." _

"Where are you?" I demanded, feeling my skin begin to prickle. She laughed softly, the sound of heels clicking against the ground.

"_You know, I've only ever _imagined_ you naked? I mean, sure, I've peeked into the Champion's memories, but nothing compares to seeing it firsthand." _I snarled softly, trying to mask my unease. I still couldn't see her. Just the way she wanted it. _"I mean, good _God, _aren't you drop dead gorgeous?"_ My wings fanned out slowly, fluttering with unease. I stayed by Nadia.

"How are you here when I'm awake?" She chuckled again, the footsteps getting closer.

"_Why?" _she asked, right by my ear. A strong hand grasped my shoulder and flipped me over onto my back beside Nadia.

She appeared suddenly, straddling my waist and her hands pressed to my sides. A lacy blood red corset and matching panties covered her body, her eyes dawned Bo's signature smoky eye shadow. Already, I felt myself falling into this imposter's eyes. _"Don't you like it?" _ she leaned down, her lips pressing to the side of my neck. I tried to throw her off, but my body didn't respond to my commands. _"Don't fight me, Lauren."_ She purred. _"It'll be okay."_

"Answer me!" I commanded and she just chuckled, licking my jaw bone before biting my ear.

"_My master is growing stronger." _She murmured sweetly in my ear, lips brushing my skin._ "The stronger he is, the less he needs me. The less he needs me, the more freedom I get." _She ran her finger over the side of my face as she pulled back to face me directly. _"The more freedom I have to be with you any time of the night, asleep or awake." _

"Aren't you worried about waking her up?" I asked and she smiled, shaking her head.

"_No. Her world is frozen in time. Ours on the other hand…" _Her lips captured mine in a passionate, but fleeting, embrace. The kind of kiss Bo had used to drive me crazy before the world went to hell. _"Ours is very much alive." _I bit my lip, trying to gather my scattered nerves. "_That's it, my love." _She breathed with a smile in her voice. _"Let me give you solace. Let me give you the peace you've been yearning for for so long." _Her lips brushed mine again and this time I felt myself kiss her back. It was in that moment that I had let myself be fooled willingly. I wanted this illusion to be real. I wanted her to be Bo, not some timeless Old One, who was powerful enough to kill me if she wanted, who only looked like Bo. And, for the briefest of moments, it _was _Bo.

Every soft curve, every breathless pant and wanting moan was the woman I'd fallen in love with so long ago. She rested her elbows on either side of my head, her finger knotting in my hair as hers brushed my face. I pulled out of the kiss as a tear rolled down my face against my will. She hesitated a moment before kissing away the droplet.

"_What is it, Lauren?"_ She asked softly, brushing her thumb over my cheek bone as I squeezed my eyes shut. I gripped her forearms, clinging to this illusion. _"What's wrong?" _I sniffed and tried to keep it together.

"When do I get to be happy?" I asked in a broken whisper. "I never wanted to be the Guardian. I never wanted to even fall in love with Bo. So why does all of this keep happening to me?" Bo's voice shushed me soothingly, her hand stroking my hair back from my face.

"_It's okay, Lauren."_ She told me caringly. _"I'm here now. I can take away all your pain and suffering. You just have to let me in." _

"I can't."

"_No?"_ she asked, brushing her nose against mine. _"I want to show you something, Lauren, what you could have if you stopped fighting this."_

In an instant, I was standing in a field, dressed, thank God, the long grass brushing my legs as a warm summer breeze blew through the clearing. I blinked in the light of the setting sun. What the hell? I willed my wings to expand, and, to my surprise, nothing happened. I glanced over my shoulder and was shocked that I didn't see the midnight limbs. _They're gone? _

Two sets of small hands wrapped around either wrist and pulled. My heart jolted in surprise and I looked down, finding a small girl and small boy tugging either wrist. Their hair was a dirty blonde, eyes as brown and warm as Bo's were. They smiled up at me, teeth missing.

"_Come on, Mommy! Uncle Tanner said you were going to take us fishing!"_ I blanked.

_Mommy? _

"I'll, uh, I'll be there in a second." I said, "Run on ahead." They nodded before the boy tapped the girl on the shoulder

"_You're it!"_ he giggled, taking off through the tall grass. The girl shot after him, her summer dress swirling behind her.

"_Aren't they beautiful?" _a third voice asked, her arms wrapping around my waist firmly, chin resting on my shoulder.

"Who are they?" I asked incredulously.

"_Our children." _The Old One murmured as she pressed her lips against my neck. _"Or, rather, yours and the Champions." _

"But they look like both Bo and I. How..?" she chuckled, swaying us back and forth.

"_Magic isn't as limited as you think it is, Lauren. One little ritual and you get Casey and Isabel. Your beautiful children." _She inhaled deeply and sighed. I felt my own chest begin to fill with a warm comfort, a sweet, sugary bliss. My lungs expanded, drinking in the smell of the setting sun.

A family.

I could have a family.

With Bo.

A hard, cold jolt struck me. Bo would never give into the temptation of a twisted, evil thing. I was broken inside, sure, but I had had my moment of weakness when I allowed the Old One to kiss me and I kissed her back. But that was all it was. A moment. She could wear Bo's skin, kiss me the way she did, but she would never be my Bo.

Not now, not ever.

My eyes snapped open in the dark of Nadia's room but I didn't have time to lash out against her before she vanished with a distinguishing snarl. _"You're an idiot! You keep denying yourself what you _truly _want because you believe that it's right!" _I was stunned when I found myself flying off the bed, spinning through the air and crashing into the wall. It was like déjà vu. It sounds stupid, but I could remember being thrown like that before.

_I fly through the air as something charges me, throwing me into the posts on Bo's bed. The wood snaps under the force of my body and I hit the wall before crashing to the ground._

I gasped and groan as I push myself up off the floor. Black dots danced across my vision. _"I'll show you just how big of a mistake you've made." _

I grit my teeth and lunge towards her as she appears again, claws extended. To my shock, I pass through her and face plant on the floor.

It wasn't possible. I'd been getting molested by that thing just a minute or two again. I could feel it's touch the way I felt the ground beneath me. Solid. Real. And yet I fell through it like it wasn't there. A strong hand grabbed my chin and lifted it roughly. I stared up at the glowing blue eyes.

"How?" I wheezed, feeling my lungs contract with panic.

"_I'm surprised you had to ask." _it said in a cold voice, its eyes more calculating than seductive. _"Especially after our first meet and greet." _She ran her fingers over the side of my face. _"Memories are my forte. You see, mortal bodies can remember a lot of things, sometimes even more than your brains can. Trauma is stored in your muscles, your tendons, your tissue." _Her fingers knotted in my hair roughly, pulling so my head was craned even further from the ground. _"And all I have to do is find the right memories, and the great Guardian is nothing more than a useless sack of meat." _She dropped my head back to the ground.

"You can torture me all you like." I panted, pushing myself to my feet "With Bo's memories or physical pain, but I'll die before I take your side against my friends." I looked her in the eyes, her stare was emotionless, completely blank. Then, her lips turned up slightly

"_What about Tanner?" _My heart hammered hard once before seeming to stop all together. _"Are you willing to sacrifice him for your own selfish cause?" _I looked at her cocky smirk and my chest tightened.

"It was you? You're the one who made my brother sick?" She let out a throaty laugh.

"_Oh please, Lauren. He's not your brother. He's just some Shadow child that somehow ended up being raised by a bunch of humans. Honestly, you should have just let the Ash have him. It would have saved you a lot of head—and heart—ache. At least I can correct your mistake for you."_

"I swear to God if you let him die I'll—"

"_I'm not the one who will be letting him die, Lauren. If you keep being so stupid—so moronically righteous—I will let the fever run its course and kill him." _I paused, exhaling heavily. I was trapped. I had no options. I felt Harbinger stirring in my chest, sending dread swirling through my body. I clenched my fists tightly by my side.

"What, exactly, are you asking from me?" She smiled.

"_I want that amazingly powerful body of yours. You can keep your soul, it's of no use to me." _

"If I don't have a body, where will my soul be?" She shrugged.

"_Beats me. Pick someone and I'll snuggle you in their body with them." _The thought made me shiver.

"How do I know you won't just kill Tanner anyway?"

"_You don't. But if you don't do it, your 'brother' will most definitely die. So what will it be, Lauren? Take a chance and possibly save your brother? Or let him die 'for the greater good'?" _I didn't answer. I didn't know. How could I make a decision like this? My heart dropped to the bottom of my stomach and I thought I was going to be sick.

I either had to give the Old One and the Garuda the most powerful weapon we had, my body, or I had to watch my brother die and know I let it happen. She cocked her head as my palms turned slick with sweat. _"Perhaps you need more time to decide." _I swallowed hard. She smiled at me, touching my face lightly. _"I'll give you two days, my Love." _She whispered _"Two days, and then the deal's off." _ I looked into her eyes, seeing nothing but affection in them. It was a sight that made absolute hatred swell in my chest. She turned to leave and paused halfway to the door. _"Oh, and don't think about telling any of your buddies about my…offer or…" _She glanced at the frozen woman on the bed, at the peaceful expression on her face_. "I'll take your new girlfriend too." _She reached the door and vanished into a fine black mist, leaving me standing in the darkness of Nadia's room.

What sort of hell trap was I in? What was I supposed to do? Not only was Tanner on the line, but so was Nadia. I'd dragged her into this and now she was going to die if I didn't protect her. I looked over at the woman on the bed. The woman who had brought me so much comfort, so much solace in place of all my torment. And I had brought that _thing _into her home. My frustration bubbled until it exploded from my lips in a vicious snarl, my fist shooting for the wall and smashing through it.

"Lauren!" Nadia bolted upright in bed, eyes shooting wide. "What's wrong?!" I pulled my arm from her wall, glancing back at her. "What in God's name happened to your back!?" My phone rang before I could answer her. I rummaged through the clothing on the floor, trying to find my pants. Eventually, I spotted the screen of my phone as it illuminated my pocket. I pulled the device from my article of clothing. I pressed the answer button without looking at who had called.

"Hello?" I said sharply, my patients and composure shattering.

"Lauren?" my heart stopped dead in my chest.

"Bo?" her voice was trembling, I could hear the phone shaking.

"I'm sorry I called so late and I didn't mean to wake you up or whatever it—"

"Bo, what's wrong?" I was met by a harsh sob, her hand muffling the noise. I gripped my phone tighter, hearing the plastic creak under the force. "Bo!"

"I did something bad, Lauren." She cried "I don't know what happened, it was all so fast and he-he came at me and I didn't know what to do! He was so angry and-and yelling about things that didn't make sense and the he hit me and—"

"Who hit you?" Fury was now beginning to burn a hole in my stomach. The thought of someone laying their hands on her was enough to turn my vision red and for my claws to extend of their own volition.

"Ryan."

"I swear to God I'll kill him!" I snapped and she cried harder, a heartbroken, horrified sob. I froze on my way to pulling my pants on.

"You can't kill him." I shook my head in disbelief.

"Bo, I know you care about him, but he hit you! You can't seriously be protecting him-"

"You can't kill him." She repeated, her breaths were trembling as she paused for a few moments. Then she cried in one desperate sob "because I already did."

**Bam Bam. **

**With the School year being here, I want to bash my head against something. Your reviews will ensure it is a padded wall I beat my head against so I don't go brain dead and can no longer write stuff.**

**Please, think of yourselves, help put me somewhere safe.**


	10. Preparation

**CHAPTER TEN**

_**Bo**_

I stared at Ryan's body in the middle of my living room floor, my dagger sticking out of his chest, his blood pooling slowly on the floor. I sat on the couch, knees pulled to my chest, waiting for Lauren and Dyson. I was going to be sick. In fact, I had already vomited twice and was now waiting for round three to begin. I shook my head hard. Kenzi was at Nate's and I couldn't call her and tell her 'oh, by the way, I totally murdered my boyfriend.' It wouldn't be fair to ruin her night. I wiped my nose on the back of my hand.

That night hadn't started out so terribly.

"_You're cut off." I look up at Trick who gives me a warm glare as I wave for another drink. I blink groggily. _

"_I'm not even drunk." _

"_But that look on your face says you're heading there fast." I pout, resting my chin on my hand. He sighs, wiping the counter. "What's got you so down?" He asks as if he knows the answer. "I thought things were good with Ryan?" _

"_They are—it is but that's the problem." He looked at me like I was insane. I took a moment to figure out how to explain what I was feeling. "Lauren came back to her and Dyson's place with this chick, Nadia. A _human! _And they were _so _into each other!" _

"_And this human saw her wings?" I nodded. _

"_Yeah! And the weirdest part was that she wasn't even freaked out about it! Lauren can't be with a human!" _

"_Why not?" he asked and I blinked at him. _

"_Because there's rules and shit!" _

"_Lauren's human, Bo, there's no rules about two humans being together. Besides, I thought this was about you and Ryan."_

"_It is…or was…I don't know." I dropped my head to the bar. _

"_I think it's good for Lauren to be seeing someone. Give you both your space. You're happy with Ryan, Lauren's happy with this Nadia. Win-win, right? Especially if this human has no intentions of telling Lauren's secret." I narrow my eyes at the bar keep, noting how he seemed to be pushing Lauren and I away from each other. _

"_What are you hiding, Old Man?" I demanded and he looked at me, startled. _

"_What do you mean? I'm not _hiding _anything." _

"_Then why are you so happy that Lauren's got a new human whatever?" _

"_I'm happy because she's been alone for so long. It's nice that she has someone." _

"_What? I'm not good enough for her? I'm such a bad person because I can't remember a damn thing about this apparent 'relationship' we had?" _

"_Bo that's not—"_

"_Not what? Because no one will tell me a flipping thing about what happened to me and yet everyone is all super concerned about it. I just wish someone would tell me what the hell I was like before that goddamn demon bitch took it from me!"_

"_That's enough, Isabeau," he snapped and my jaw snapped tight. "No one has told you because it's better that you don't remember." I blinked at him. _

"_What do you mean? Was my life really that bad before?" He shook his head, muttering under his breath. "Why the hell won't you answer me?!"_

"_I said that's enough!" I stared at him a moment longer before snatching my wallet and phone from the counter. I turned and left, tossing a curse under my breath. _

A knock on the door jolted me out of my daze and I stood up, slinking around the body on the ground and edging my way to answer it. Lauren was standing in front of Dyson, a stern look on her face.

"Hi," I whispered.

"Hi," she said almost curtly, walking around me, slowing when she saw Ryan.

"What happened?" Dyson asked and I sat down on the couch again, pulling my knees back to my chest. I bit my thumb nail as I tried to organize my thoughts.

"I…" I shook my head. "I don't know, he was yelling at me when I got home. I tried to calm him down and he hit me." I touched the bruise on my cheek. Lauren crouched down in front of me, pulling my hand away. She probed the area with skilled fingers and I winced. She breathed a quiet sorry before tilting my head to see better. "He kept coming at me after I told him to stop. I panicked so I…" I hung my head "I stabbed him." Despite her cold demeanor moments before, Lauren pulled me into her arms.

"It's okay," she told me, pulling her fingers through my hair. "You're okay, Bo. Dyson will take care of this and everything will go back to the way it was."

"No it won't!" I pulled away from her, looking her in the eyes. "Nothing can ever be the way it was, Lauren! Not when I'm some victim who can't remember a damned thing! Not when I can't remember my life and who I am. Not when no one will tell me anything!" I stood up and walked around her and Dyson, running to my bedroom. I slammed the door and locked it.

I took a few breaths, my back against the door. I slid to the floor, putting my face in my hands. I was so sick of this. I wanted answers earlier and Trick wouldn't give them to me. Lauren and Dyson sure as hell wouldn't either. She was the last one I should ask about this. Most certainly the last person who would want to relive everything that happened. I put my face in my hands.

I sat there for almost fifteen minutes before a soft rasp echoed by my ear.

"Go away," I muttered, wiping my eyes.

"Bo," Lauren's voice resounded through the wood. "Please let me in."

"No. I don't want to talk to anyone right now."

"Okay," she sighed. I heard fabric slide down the other side of the door and then the muted thud of her landing. "Then I'll talk and you can listen." I didn't respond. "The reason I haven't told you about what you—I mean _we_—were is because I thought it wasn't right to force you to deal with all of this. To force you into a life that you didn't belong in. Or, rather, I guess I was worried that you would reject the life you were taken from and revolt. I was worried that, if you knew just how much commitment we had to each other, you would get scared and run away. It seemed logical that if I left you in the dark, you would stay. I was selfish. But I was scared." She drew in a slow breath and hit the back of her head against the door. "If you want to know about something, open the door and I will tell you the truth about anything you ask." I paused.

"Really?"

"Really." I reached up, swivelling onto my knees and grasping the door knob. I opened the door and she met my gaze evenly, though dread shone clear in her eyes. "Can I come in?" she asked and I nodded. We rose at the same time.

I caught a glimpse at Dyson and Hale wrapping Ryan up in a tarp.

Lauren stepped forward, forcing me back into the room. She shut the door behind her, wincing when she moved forward again. She glanced back behind her; her feathers were caught in the door. She opened the door, pulling her wings in tighter before shutting it again. One of her feathers fluttered to the ground. She plucked it from the ground before walking past me. I watched her as she came to a stop before the bed. She motioned to it with her hand. "Please." I obeyed and sat down. She stood in front of me, crossing her arms over her chest. "So," she began, looking at the feather in her hand "where do you want to start?"

"Um, I don't know." She gave me an amused smile. "The beginning?"

Lauren and I talked for hours. Most of it I couldn't remember by the time I ran out of questions. She'd kept her promise, told me everything she knew about anything I asked. There were some things she couldn't tell me, because she just didn't know the answer. She had told me that we were bonded as more than just the Champion and Guardian. We were mates, even if I couldn't remember. That was why I reacted the way I did that night at the Dal with Ryan. She told me that I had promised her my whole life and that she promised me the same thing.

But before I met her I'd apparently been running for years, never staying in one place long enough that anyone got to know me well. And that all of it changed when I met Kenzi.

She told me about the first time we met and the first time we'd slept together. How she had been in my bed because the Ash ordered her to and that she'd done it believing that it was the only way to keep me safe.

There was so much to take in that none of it had fully registered with me yet.

She ended up laying on the bed next to me, staring up at the ceiling. Her hands were folded neatly over her stomach, her jacket was hanging off of the chair in the corner. I looked over at her before staring back at the ceiling too. Neither of us had said anything for at least half an hour now.

"Did you sleep with her?" I asked in a breath. She inhaled deeply and sighed.

" I don't see how that has any pertinents to what we're talking about."

"It involves you," I said, looking at her again. "At one point anything that involved you involved me too. Besides, you said I could ask anything I wanted and you would tell me the truth." she waited a second.

"Yes," she stated without emotion. "I needed to be close to someone. She was a more than willing participant."

"hm." she smirked

"She was good too."

"Swell."

"Jealous?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yup."

"Then stop thinking about beating Nadia's head in and then ravaging me in this bed."

"Stay out of my head."

"Stop thinking about sex so loudly."

"I'm not thinking about sex so loudly."

"Then why can I hear you telling me to say your name?"

"Because those are your own thoughts."

"Really?"

"Yup."

"So I'm guessing I also imagine myself in your living room wearing only my lab coat asking you in a seductive tone if you want to, and I quote, 'play doctor'?"

"Seems that way doesn't it?"

she chuckled and shook her head.

"Do you love her?" She stiffened at the question. It took her a second before she relaxed again.

"You already know the answer."

"Do you love _me_?" I rolled onto my side to face her. She looked at me, a wistful glint in her eyes but quickly replaced with a glimmer of despair.

"Yes." She directed her attention upwards again. I stifled a yawn and she smiled, rolling over and propping herself up on her elbow. "Come on," she said, pulling at the comforter "Dyson's finishing up and you need to get some rest." She managed to pull the blanket out from under me and lay it over my body. "I'll come back and check on you in the morning." She moved to get up and I caught her hand.

"Stay," I whispered, "please? Just for tonight." She hesitated before nodding and lied back down. I gripped her hand and pulled her closer to me, rolling over so we spooned. Her hand came to rest on my stomach, chin on my shoulder. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, relaxing further into Lauren's embrace. She kissed my shoulder blade as I ran my fingers over her arm, pushing up the sleeve of her blouse. All was still for a moment and then I felt it.

The stir.

I could feel Lauren's chi stirring in her, warm and bright. I could feel her aura surrounding me, filling my lungs with the gentle caresses like reunited lovers. I swallowed hard. My body wanted me to feed. My body wanted Lauren's chi. Her arm tensed around me, no doubt feeling my need. I didn't know if she wanted me in that moment or not. But it didn't matter.

By the time the pulse of my power left my hand and travelled into her, I could barely think straight. I was hurt. I needed to heal.

Lauren trembled behind me, a low gasp passing through her lips. Her fingers tangled in the sheets, her head bowed against my back. "Bo," she moaned, I could tell if she was asking me to stop or to keep going. I hit her again and she drew in a shaky breath. I rolled over to face her, seeing the way her eyes were squeezed shut, her arm trapping me to the bed.

"Lauren…" I whispered and she bit her lip, keeping her eyes shut. Her wings fluttered. "Lauren, look at me." She didn't move so I grasped her face, pulling her head up. "Look at me." She obeyed finally.

And that's when whatever kind of self-control she had disappeared.

She opened her eyes, and those glorious rubies stared back at me. A sharp spike of want shot through me and I saw my eyes light up, reflecting off of hers.

"Please," Lauren begged, grasping my forearms. "Please." her voice, as distraught and emotional as it was, had no impact on me. "Bo, I can't…" she struggled to pull her eyes from mine, but she was just as trapped as I was.

"Shhh," I cupped her face, no longer in control of my words or my actions. It was as if I was operating on blind instinct. "It's okay, Lauren…" I could see her features growing emotionless as she too was over taken by whatever was driving me. "Let go…" then we clashed together.

Our lips met in a violent crash of teeth. She lifted herself and drew me under her, pulling my legs up on either side of her waist. Her lips left mine and latched firmly onto my neck as her hands made their way under my shirt. I moaned, reaching my hands down her body, sinking my nails into her back and raking them over her soft skin. She growled. I tore her altered shirt from her body, taking a moment to run my hands up her sides and feel the twisted steel beneath her skin. Her wings fanned out at my touch, their span creating an imposing presence as she clutched me to her. Our lips met again, but this time I fed.

If I thought the first time I'd done it had been incredible, I didn't have words to describe it now. Her lips parted as I pulled the chi from her. She supported my head with one hand as the other gripped my clothes. I could feel her pushing her chi into me, willing me to take it from her. To take it _all _from her.

But there was something else. Some thing underneath our passionate romp.

Desperation.

Fear.

The playfulness had disappeared.

She clutched me tighter. I pushed her up. She gave a small wail of despair. "Bo, please-"

"What are you so afraid of?"

"I have to-you have to take it. Please!"

"Lauren! Answer the question!"

"You have to take it, Bo, I can't stop her."

"Stop who?"

"Bo, just take it!"

"Would you just talk to me?!"

"She's going to kill him, Bo," her voice broke, her head dropping to my chest. I wrapped my arms around her shoulders as she cried, her body shaking violently. "I can't save him."

"Lauren, what are you-" the clicking of metal cut me off and Lauren was wrenched off of my body. She let out a choked yowl of surprise as she crashed to the ground. I lurched up.

There stood the Morrigan with four of the biggest men I'd ever seen. A metal collar was clamped around the blonde's neck and cuffs were placed on her wrists.

"Sorry to bust in on your love nest, Succubus," she said flippantly, "I'm here doing dirty work." she turned on the three hundred dollar heel and face Lauren as she struggled feebly against the restraints. "By order of the Dark Fae elders," she sighed like she was bored already "I, the Morrigan, charge you with attempted murder of Thompson Walker as he attempted to feed from a human.

"She's my human though!" Lauren wheezed around the collar. The Morrigan laughed.

"Oh Honey, you can't make a claim on shit. As far as the laws concerned, you're human." She cleared her throat. "In the name of the Elders, I place you under arrest and will confine you in my compound where you will be held until such a time that a trial will take place." They forced Lauren to the ground as she tried to get back up.

"You can't do this!" I yelled.

"Uh, yeah I can. A Light Fae human tried to kill a Dark Fae incubus who just so happens to be the great grandson of one of the elders. It's kind of my job, which is unfortunate considering the little prick has been a pain in my side since he could walk." She looked at Lauren "I wish you would have just finished the job, to be honest. Now I'll have to listen to him bitch and complain about it."

"You can't take her," I said, this time my voice held a command that surprised me. I stood up on the bed. Strength flooded my limbs as Lauren whimpered as the chains were wrapped firmly around her torso, binding her wings to her back. I was pissed. And scared. They had no right to do this. They had no right to take Lauren from me. She was mine. They couldn't have her. Lauren's chi stirred inside of me, melding with my own.

I'd die first.

My vision went dark and the world faded away.

_**Lauren**_

The chains tightened around my body and clamped my limbs still. I'd given my strength to Bo. As much of it as I could. Now I was barely strong enough to stand, let alone fight.

I was so tired.

So, so tired.

I trembled as I struggled to sit up, only to be shoved back down. It was over. I needed to make the decision. I needed to choose.

And I did.

"You can't take her."

My heart stopped beating. It was as if the world had paused in time. Her voice was...different. It held a tone that forced me to look at her.

"Bo?"

Her body was pulsing, her bones glowing beneath her skin. Her eyes were glowing a brilliant violet, brighter than I had ever seen before. Her hair and clothes floated around her body as if lifted by a wind that only found her. Her eyes locked with the Morrigan's. I could feel whispers of her influence tickling my skin. I searched for her thoughts, digging to find the reason behind whatever it was that was happening. That was a mistake. I heard nothing, just a low humming that vibrated through my skull. I felt her control slipping into my mind.

"What's going on?!" Dyson and Hale burst into the bedroom, stopping in their tracks when they saw Bo. "What..?"

I groaned as Bo looked at me, her eyes sending a spasm of pain through me. I dropped my head, feeling my limbs beginning to give out. "Stand." She commanded evenly. I opened my mouth to tell her I couldn't, that I was too weak, but it clamped firmly shut again.

My body moved without my permission.

My limbs collaborated to get me to my feet. I stood before her, my entire frame shaking. The chains pulled tight as I moved to straighten my body. Her eyes held no look of emotion, of concern or affection. It was the look of a general assessing the troops. She had told me to do something and my body obeyed. No one else in the room moved. They were frozen on the spot with fear or shock.

"Ready yourself." I looked at her, confused by the command. But my body wasn't. Agony shot through me as I began to shift against my will. My teeth extended, letting the taste of blood fill my mouth as a fang punctured my unprepared tongue. I cried out but it didn't stop the quills from sliding through my skin, tearing it, letting more crimson leak from my body. Some spikes interlocked with the chains, poking through the links, jamming me up even more.

"Bo,"I grunted between clenched teeth, feeling my control beginning to slip. Harbinger began to stir for the first time in months. It pulled me back as The Champion called it to the surface. "Bo, stop." I begged, struggling to keep in control. "I can't..."

"Lauren, what's happening?!" Dyson demanded, fear evident in his voice.

'I don't know. Subdue Bo! Knock her out, do something! I'm not in control!"

Dyson let out a snarl as he dodged around the dark fae and leapt through the air at Bo. His claws extended, eyes gone the yellow colour of the wolf. The succubus didn't flinch. She caught him by the throat like it was nothing. His body swung forwards with the momentum, still Bo didn't move. He clawed at her hand, choking around her grip. She stared at him for a moment before chucking him away. He flew through the air, slamming into the wall and then through it. She turned back to me where I stood shaking. She stepped forwards and then down to stand in front of me.

"Alright, bitch" The Morrigan said, stepping forwards. She held her hand out in front of her. "One more step or command from your luscious lips and I'll melt you into a pile of succu-goo." Bo smirked at her, amused by her threat. She looked at me again.

_"Fight." _

My body convulsed at her mental command. My limbs pressed against the restraints, tearing the quills from my arms. I cried out but couldn't fight against it. Still, my body struggled against the dwarven chains, making the metal squeal but not give.

"What the hell is going on here!?" Kenzi's voice joined in "Bo? What the shit?!"

"Lauren!" Simba shouted, his paws hammering against the wood floor. He pushed off, hurtling over me and heading straight for Bo. She swatted him aside. He spun in the air and crashed down on his side.

"Mortals," Bo scoffed, shaking her head, "so foolish." She touched my face. "But you and I, my love," she whispered, running her thumb over my cheek. I looked at her the best I could through the blur of pain that clouded my vision "you and I are the only things that are important. We are the ones who will be the change. We will be the ones to end this war."

"Bo, please, stop this."

"I will not allow them to take you. If you will not fight them of your own free will, I will make you fight them. You have a purpose to serve at my side." she pushed the hair from my face. "I will be queen. I will lead the fae, united as one under my rule. And you will be there with me, my protector." She wiped the wetness from my cheek. "My Guardian."

She stiffend suddenly and turned her attention to her arm; a tranquillizer dart was lodged into it. She looked up and I followed her gaze. Dyson stood in the hole in the wall, one arm pulled tight into his chest, the other pointing a dart gun at Bo. It must have been left over from when they came to hunt me down at the cabin.

The brunette plucked the dart from her arm and tossed it off somewhere. But it had already started taking effect. Within seconds, she collapsed to the ground. Without whatever power she had used to make me stand, I followed in suit. My body crashed to the ground, shifting back to my docile state. I curled in on myself, my body still bleeding from the torn wounds. I moaned, biting back the bile that rose in my throat. I couldn't move anymore. Couldn't cry. I just laid on the ground and closed my eyes, wishing someone would bludgeon me so I could escape.

"Knock her out," the Morrigan ordered, sounding more than a little ruffled. "I don't want to drive back to the compound having to listen to her sniffle the entire time." someone kneeled down in front of me, a syringe in hand. They tugged carefully at my bloodied arm, wiping the inside of my elbow. I whined pathetically and tried to move away.

"It's okay, Lauren," a familiar voice echoed through my head. I looked up and squinted through the daze.

"Amelia?"

"Yeah, human-face," her words were playful but her tone was dead serious. "It's me." I turned my face into her leg.

"I just want to sleep." I breathed and she smoothed her hand over my cheek.

"I know. Just a pinch and then you can sleep all you want." she pulled the skin taught and slid the needle in. I didn't feel much of a pinch, but I did feel the dull warmth that flooded my veins

The warmth that lovingly lulled me away.

**Long time no see. **

**I've got no excuse as to why I was gone. I can't promise I'll be regular with updates either. But I got Lost girl season 1 for Christmas and got inspired. **

**I'm too brain dead at the moment to write a witty review plea. But just know that, when you review, it's like putting a snuggie on my heart.**


	11. Old Flames and New Burns

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

_**Bo**_

"Bo? Bo-Bo, wake up, babe. Drug induced sleepy nap time is over." I groaned, rolling over and covering my head with a pillow. "WAKE UP!" A sharp smack on my back had me lurching up.

"I'm awake! Jesus, can't a girl catch some-shit!" my head gave a sharp throb. I covered my eyes with my hand. "What the hell is wrong with my head?" Kenzi's ruffled my hair and I slapped her arm away.

"Sorry about that," Dyson's voice echoed from the doorway. "You smacked your head when you fell."

"When I fell?" I squinted at him, noting the tea cup in his hand as he made his way to me. "Did I get really drunk last night? I don't remember drinking _that _much." I was met with silence as I inhaled the smell of lavender, cupping the mug in both hands. I looked at Dyson and Kenzi as they stared at me blankly. "What?"

"Um, Bo..." Kenzi's started, resting her hand on my leg, "What's the last thing you remember from last night?" I furrowed my brows in thought, sipping the tea.

"Lauren and I fooling around and then something happened. She got really upset and she was about to tell me what was wrong when-" my hand flew to my mouth "Lauren! The Morrigan came to take her away! They said she...she murdered someone?"

"She tried to kill someone; she didn't actually do it. It was one of the Dark Fae elder's great grandson. He went after Nadia and Lauren intervened. Would have killed him but Nadia stopped her."

"Where's Lauren now?"

"The big bad bitch took her back to her evil headquarters," my gothic sidekick said, her face sombre. "They took Amelia too."

"What?!"

"The Dark Fae higher ups don't trust having one of their more important healers on Light Fae territory anymore. They're concerned for her safety."

"What about Tanner?" I demanded "He's still sick, right? Amelia needs to treat him, she's his doctor. She's looking after him!"

"Trick is watching him. He's not getting any better or any worse."

I set the tea down and threw the covers off. I vaguely noticed the fact that pushing myself off the bed had me getting more air than I should have had. "What are we waiting here for? Let's go get them back." Dyson stepped in front of me.

"We can't."

"What do you mean, 'we can't'? Come on! Let's storm the trenches, get Lauren back. I need to talk to her."

"Bo," Kenzi's looked at me and something in her eyes made me stop. She patted the bed again. "Sit." She shared a heavy glance with Dyson. "Do you remember what happened _after _the Morrigan came for Lauren?" I drew a blank.

"No," I said "there's nothing. Why?" again, they shared that look. No one said anything. "Guys," Dread began to push my heart towards my stomach, "What's wrong? What did I do?" I was met with silence. "I swear to God I will beat the answers out of you! Someone tell me what happened!"

"We don't know what happened," Dyson said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Hale and I were...cleaning up and we had just left for disposal a minute before the Morrigan got here. When we came in you were..."

"All Super Saiyan." Ken looked at me. She was teasing, but her voice didn't match her face. She was wary. "Your hair and clothes were all floaty."

"When I came in, Lauren was bound in dwarven chains, standing up. I thought the Morigan was being her saI didn't think much of it until..."

"What?"

"You commanded her to shift, and she obeyed." I blinked.

"What do you mean I 'commanded' her?"

"I mean you told her 'ready yourself' and she started to shift. From the amount of blood and tears, I'd say she didn't want to."

"Blood?" he nodded.

"Her teeth, her fingers, her arms...all of the major physical shift points were tearing. She couldn't have been mentally prepared for it." My stomach churned at the word 'tearing'.

"No...no I could never hurt Lauren. I wouldn't make her do something like that if she didn't want to. Especially if it hurt her as much as you said."

"I tried to stop you and, well," Dyson jerked his head to the side. I looked and my jaw fell open. Why the hell was there a giant hole in my room? "You chucked me through a wall."

"Simba tried too," Kenzi said, scratching her head, "you hit him out of the air like a fly."

"Oh my God," How strong would someone have to be to throw a grown man through a wall and smacked a mature lion-thing out of the air? I looked between them "are you okay?" I turned to Kenzi "is Simba okay?"

"I got out with a sprained wrist and a busted rib."

"Simba got a concussion and a bruised shoulder. He's in my room resting."

"What happened next? With Lauren?"

"I don't know," Kenzi said, "You looked at her and she lost it. She was snarling and struggling against the chains."

"Her spines got tangled in the chain links. They were...torn out as she pull to get free."

"And did she? Get free I mean?"

"No," Dyson sighed "they were dwarven chains. Chains that are both extremely rare and indestructible. She was struggling, but there was no way for her to break free." I closed my eyes and dropped my head.

"So she was just hurting herself for no reason."

"No, she was doing it because you told her to."

"It _wasn't me, _Dyson!" I snapped at him "I don't remember it, I wouldn't do it, I _didn't _do it. I'd never intentionally hurt her."

"But the fact is, Bo, words left your lips and Lauren responded. You have a power over her. A power I haven't seen before." I shook my head.

"If I do have this power, I don't want it. I want to see Lauren."

"Honestly, Bo, and I'm not saying this to make you feel like shit, but you don't. Not now at least." I looked at Kenzi as she spoke, her hand clasped over mine. My heart was now comfortably sitting in my stomach. I already felt like shit. I couldn't remember anything and it was driving me insane. I hurt the woman I cared about. Was there a lower level than that?

"How badly was she-" My voice gave out and I squeezed my eyes shut, bowing my head "how hurt was she?"

"Amelia's been keeping in touch. They've got Lauren in the dungeon, a makeshift medical station has been set up for her. They're monitoring her vitals, making sure she's okay. They've kept her sedated; Amelia said Lauren could use as much rest as possible."

"I want to see her," I murmured, sniffling. "I need to see her, even if she doesn't know I'm there."

Dyson sighed and rubbed his neck. "I can talk to Trick, see if he can't use his influence in the Dark Fae to get you in."

"Thank you, Dyson."

+/+\+

Two days passed before Trick got me clearance into the compound, however reluctant he was to help. It wasn't where the Morrigan spent most of her time, but where the elders stayed and the prisoners were kept.

I walked into the compound, greeted quickly by Amelia. The building was very "old victorian" meets "the bat cave".

The shifter looked pissed.

"Hey, sex-on-a-stick," she said, strutting towards me. "I need you to sign in before we go see her." she shoved a clipboard at me and I took it, filling in the date, time, my name, and then signing it.

"What's with the prison routine?" she rubbed her eyes, suddenly looking like she hadn't slept in days.

"A Half is a high profile patient and prisoner. But they don't attract a good kind of attention. I've already had to maul a guard who got a little too cocky when he was supposed to be watching over her."

"Wow," I said, taken aback "a doctor and body guard."

"Warden, actually. But I don't like to play guard dog," she said as we made our way to a stairwell. "Unfortunately, when powerful beings are suddenly in positions of weakness, it inspires the worst in people. They like to abuse their new found superiority. I use my power to keep them in line. Whether they like it or not, I'm their elder and they have to respect that."

"You're an elder?" she huffed a laugh

"Um, no. Not in the political sense."

"I thought Elders were usually, well, elderly." she chuckled.

"Oh sweetie, you've still got so much to learn. Just because a fae looks young, doesn't mean they're not as old as dirt. I'm probably one of the oldest Fae in this compound."

"And you don't want to be an official elder?"

"No. It's a little more complicated than that. In any case, I'm not in a position of power. Usually, that means I shouldn't have any influence."

"But you do?" she laughed again, but it was cold and bitter.

"Honey, when you can turn into a wolf and tear a man's face off before he has a chance to even _think _about screaming, people learn to listen to the things you say."

We descended the stairs in silence, hearing the growing thunder of prisoners yelling. When we emerged into the hold, I was startled by just how many prisoners there were. Rows upon rows of cells, every one of them holding one fae or another. "Lauren is in the cell at the very end, the solitary cell. I thought it would be better to provide the least contact possible between her and the...others." just as she said that, a rough hand grabbed my wrist and pulled me against the bars of a cell. The slimiest looking Fae I'd ever seen licked his lips.

"Hey, sweet cheeks," he smirked "How's you like to come in here and keep a lonely man company?" before I could say anything, a slender hand grabbed my other arm and pulled me out of his grip. I stumbled into the other cell. Amelia gripped the guy's arm and slammed him against the bars.

"What have I told you about keeping your hands to yourself, slime-ball?" the man whimpered and struggled feebly.

"Hey, pretty lady," a rotten voice purred in my ear as yet another pair of hands grabbed me. Amelia whirled, releasing her victim. She bared her wolf teeth, letting out a chainsaw snarl that silenced the deafening room. Everyone stared at her, fear simmering in their eyes. Her amber eyes glared around.

"Everyone is to keep their hands to themselves or I swear I will tear them from your bodies without a second thought. Understood?" There was a pause before a disjointed murmuring of affirmations filled the air. Amelia grabbed my shirt and pulled me from my captors. I looked at her as she changed back from her wolf face and into the blue eyed beauty I'd become so familiar with. We walked the rest of the way with only the accompaniment of quiet murmurs.

The solitary cell was sealed by an iron door with a small, grate window near the top. The guard outside had his arm in a sling, guaze taped to the side of his neck and wrapped around his hand. "Good morning, Jeremy," she addressed him curtly. He skirted away from her. "How're the wounds?"

"Just fine, Healer, thank you." His voice held the unmistakable edge of fear. This must have been the man Amelia mauled.

"Are you applying the balm I gave you?"

"Yes, Healer."

"Good. If any problems arise, please don't hesitate to find me."

"I won't, Healer, thank you again. I apologize for getting out of line before."

"I'm not the one you should apologize to." She pulled open the heavy door and looked pointedly at the man. "But, should it happen again, you can be sure I won't show the same restraint again." Jeremy stiffened and Amelia turned her cold gaze on me instead. She waved her arm for me to enter. I walked in slowly, wary of the dark that surrounded the room. I was dank and musty, smelling of dust and stale air. It took a second for my eyes to adjust and when they did, I felt like crying.

She was lying on a cot on the far side of the room, her arms chained to the floor. Two other cots were on either side of her to support her wings. Heavy metal clamps had been latched around each of the limbs, threaded through the feathers, weighing them down and linking them to the ground. She was asleep. I walked closer, only when I neared did I see the gauze wraps covering both of her arms entirely, stained a light pink. Tubes and wires wrapped around her arms and snaked under her hospital gown. The heart monitor gave steady beeps. A tube was shoved down her throat, fed through her mouth.

"Oh God," I dropped to my knees by her wing. "Lauren..."

"She's stable. Her wounds are healing, but not as quickly as I'd like." Amelia nudged the closest cot so she could access the unconscious blonde. "They tried to clip her wings, but the hedge trimmers broke and the feathers remained untouched. So they settled for weighing them down instead."

"How bad was she hurt?" I asked, touching the metal clamp on her wing. The cold bit my finger tips.

"Are you sure you want to know, Bo?" She asked, pulling a stethoscope from her coat pocket and plugging it into her ears before sliding her hand under the gown. She paused, listening intently to whatever she was listening to before moving it. She looked at me.

I nodded.

"Yeah. I wanna know what I did."

"Are you positive? I mean, it's probably better that you don't know."

"I need to know. Not knowing is only making it worse." Amelia nodded. She skooted the cot out further.

"Past me a pair of rubber gloves, will you?" She pointed to the box beside the heart monitor. "Get yourself a pair too. This is a two person operation." I did as she asked, pulling the black latex over my hands.

"This won't hurt her, will it?" I asked as I moved into position by her shoulder. Amelia shook her head.

"She's more or less in a drug induced coma right now. She won't feel anything."

"A coma?" I whispered, looking at Lauren's peaceful features, watching the soft rise and fall of her chest.

"She sustained a fair amount of trauma," Amelia said simply, pulling up the tape holding the gauze in place. "Ready?" I gripped the gauze and nodded. Slowly, we lifted, peeling the fabric from the wounds.

I thought I was going to be sick.

It looked like hundreds of screw drivers had been stabbed into her and twisted around. I couldn't imagine what it would have looked like when it happened. What skin I could see was red and angry looking. Some of the holes and gashes oozed a pink mixture of puss and blood. I absently followed Amelia's movements and we folded up the soiled bandage, placing it in a metal bucket.

Amelia handed me an alcohol wipe. She kneeled down by Lauren's wrist and I did the same by her shoulder. I touched the disinfectant to her broken skin, something that should have caused her to cry out or tense at the very least.

Lauren stayed perfectly still.

Perfectly peaceful.

I wiped my nose on my sleeve and the wetness from my cheek. I leaned over her, pressing my lips to her forehead, smoothing my hand over her hair. I stayed like that for a few moments, my forehead against hers, listening to the respiratory pumping air in and out of her lungs.

We spend nearly an hour cleaning the wounds and then rewrapping her arms. I stayed by Lauren, sitting beside her wing on the cot, just watching her. I took her hand in mine, running my thumb over her skin. "She looks so peaceful," I murmured as Amelia lifted the bucket full of used bandages and antiseptic supplies. "I haven't seen her like this before. She always seems worried or angry."

"She was always scared." I looked up at the blonde, her eyes understanding, serene. "When she was still under the Ash's thumb I mean. She was worried that if she spoke up for herself, called attention to herself as being more than just some human doctor, the Ash would hurt her brother or the people she cared about. The only times she defied him was when she was sure she wouldn't get caught, or if she did it wouldn't be anything severe. It was only when you came into her life that she started wearing her ovaries on the outside and kicking all kinds of ass." I looked back at the doctor and couldn't help but smile. "Look, I'm not supposed to leave you unattended, but I can give you a couple minutes if you want."

"Yeah," I said, surprised "thank you." She nodded once.

"I'll take these to be burned and when I come back, we have to leave, okay?" I nodded and turned back to Lauren. The iron door shut behind Amelia, and we were alone.

"Just you and me again, huh?" I whispered to her, playing with her hair. I looked at the bandages, at the relaxed features of her face. "Oh, Lauren," I wiped my cheek "I'm so sorry. Everyone says that I did this to you, but I don't remember any of it. I don't remember hurting you. I would never hurt you. I wouldn't be able to, not if I knew what I was doing." I tucked her hair behind her ear. "I don't know what to do. I want to be with you, but I keep hurting you. What's worse is that you keep coming back and I just hurt you more. I could have killed you this time, had Dyson not stopped me. I just hope you understand that...that I didn't want this to happen. But from now on, I'm going to protect you, okay?" I kissed her forehead. "I'm going to keep you safe."

The door opened and I looked up, completely shocked to see Trick and the Morrigan standing there. "Trick? What are you doing here?"

"You need to come with me. Now." I stared at him

"But why?" I asked, running my fingers along the inside of Lauren's arm. Amelia came in but he didn't seem to notice her.

"The beasts trial is about to begin. I know you..."She narrowed her eyes at me "enjoy playing super skank and 'saving' the precious human. But now it's time to say bye bye blondie." I stood up, feeling a surge of strength pulse through my body.

"You're not touching her again," I growled, fists clenching by my side. "Lauren is not some 'beast'. I won't let you chain her up and haul her out in front of some ancient idiots just so you can condemn her to death anyway." The Morrigan rolled her eyes.

"Oh please. You think just because you went all crazy that you scare me now?" I clenched my teeth.

"She's under my protection now. No one is taking her anywhere while she is like this."

"Well, I guess it's too bad that you're not in charge." a large man entered the room and moved towards the cot. My eyes lit up and I met him toe for toe, baring my teeth at him.

"You touch her and I swear to God I will snap your neck."

"God, you make me sick with all your mushy protectiveness." The Morrigan looked at her nails before smoothing down her skirt. "Take the half and bring her upstairs. Even if she's a vegetable, she has to be at this bullshit hearing."

The guard made another move towards Lauren and I grabbed his arm and threw him back. We glared at each other for a brief moment before he swung for my head. I ducked it and swung for his face. It connected but didn't slow him down. His knee drove into my stomach and I staggered before rushing forwards and swinging my foot into his side. He stumbled into the wall.

Somewhere in the background, I heard beeping but I was too focused on the fight to pay it any mind.

"Bo, stop!" I didn't listen to Amelia's command and instead grabbed the man by the front of his shirt and drove my forehead into his. I pulled my fist back to punch his face in when Amelia grabbed my forearm and twisted it behind my back. "I said stop!" she growled in my ear. A low snarl rumbled from my lips and I threw her off with ease. I turned around to face her.

That's when I noticed three nurses swarming Lauren as her heart monitor beeped faster and faster. "Look at her, Bo," Amelia said, the nurses starting to yell in the back ground.

"Heart rate rising!"

"Temperature spiking!"

"Spirits, not even a half can handle this! Her body will wear out before the drugs do!"

"Look at what you're doing to her, Bo!" The healer grabbed my attention again. My fists clenched by my side. I growled as the body guard moved towards me again. Amelia held her hand up, stopping the footsteps. "Her body is trying to burn off the drugs by raising her body temperature."

"Get her cooled down, damnit! I wont hang for this beast dying on our watch!"

Another nurse came in with a bucket of water and ice. He put it by the bed and the others began soaking some of the spare bed linens and draping them over her body.

"She's reacting to _you, _Bo, her body is self-destructing because she's reacting to you!" Amelia said, trying to get through to me, quell my anger. I glared at her and then to Lauren. I looked at the heart monitor, the rapid spikes of the green line. "Bo, if you do not calm down, Lauren will boil alive." I stared at the woman on the cot. Her skin was beading with sweat, the machine was beeping so fast it sounded nearly like a flat line. I watched her chest rise and fall with choppy breaths.

"Its not working. Temp is reaching one-oh-six, heart rate is off the charts."

I watched as they injected liquids into her, seeing their frustration grow as nothing seemed to help. I was just so angry still. My heart pounded in my ears, every muscle tensed. I wanted to hurt someone. I wanted to drain someone.

I wanted power.

_But from now on I'm going to protect you, okay? _My promise drifted like a feather through my rage flooded mind. _I'm going to keep you safe._

I looked back at the woman on the cot. "This isn't you, Bo," the shifter murmured "you have to calm down. If you care about Lauren at all, you'll stop this." I held my breath for a moment. I gave Amelia a hesitant glance before walking towards Lauren.

I grabbed one of the nurses by the back of the scrub and threw her backwards, off of Lauren. I stepped over the cot supporting her wing and kneeled down beside the fragile woman, looking at the other nurses, who stared at me like deer in the headlights. I snatched a cold rag from one of their hands and snarled, making them all jump and move back. Then I turned my attention back to my lover. I wiped her forehead, now ignoring the still rapid beeping of the heart monitor.

I took her hand in mine, coldly curious as my fingers slipped into hers. I ran the cold cloth over her sweat slick skin, cooling her and hopefully soothing her body. "It's okay, Lauren," I took a deep breath in attempt to calm down. "We're okay, no one's going to hurt you. I'm not in trouble." I glared pointedly at the guard before turning back to her. I laid my hand over her chest, feeling her heart still pounding. I took another deep breath before kissing her shoulder and leaning my head against her. I closed my eyes and squeezed her hand.

Finally, the anger began to ebb and with it Lauren's pounding pulse until it was even, normal. Her skin cooled and my eyes returned to normal.

"Someone dangerous just came back into town; they're looking for you. We need to get you somewhere safe."

"Who?" Amelia asked, making Trick jump. He turned to face her. "I can handle anyone stupid enough to take a stroll into my little corner of hell. You saw for yourself how I tamed the beast just now and I didn't even have to kick her ass."

"I'm not leaving Lauren." I met Trick's exasperated gaze. "I don't care who's coming, I won't leave her when she so clearly cannot defend herself."

"She won't be coming for Lauren. Chances are she doesn't even know about know about her."

"So it's a _she, _is it?" Amelia mused "I always did love a good girlfight. Who are we looking at?"

"Yeah," I jumped on Amelia's questions "who is it? Do you know her well?"

"I don't see how that's relevant."

"Well, if you know her, you can tell us what her weaknesses are, what she wants..." I pried, resting my hand on top of Lauren's, linking my digits through hers.

"The point is she's dangerous. I can tell you more later."

"Something you can't say in front of me, Trick?" Amelia asked, narrowing her eyes at the bar keep. He sighed and turned to look at her. "What? You don't trust me? Come on, I've known you for centuries. I'm on your side, here to help and all that."

"Amelia-"

"Trick, please, whoever it is, I can help take them out. It's kind of what I do."

"Yeah," the Morigan muttered "I don't want any weirdos creeping around here either, they make life so drab it's depressing."

"I don't think-"

"Trick," Amelia said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Tell me who it is." Trick drew in a long breath. He looked up at the blonde, resting his hand over hers.

"Aife."

Amelia laughed. "I don't care what anyone says, Trick, you haven't lost your sense of humour. Seriously, though, whose this big bad fae coming to town?" His gaze remained the same remorseful stare.

"Amelia, it's Aife." She blinked at him a few times "My contacts spotted her as she made her way back into town. I'm sorry, I should have told you-" she pulled her hand from his grasp and took a step back. Even the Morigan's jaw clenched tight and her eyes widened, flicking back between Trick and Amelia.

"She's dead."

"Listen-"

"No," she said, her jaw clenched "you told me she was dead. You told me she died giving birth. You showed me her burial. Aife is dead."

"She's alive." Amelia let out a choked whimper. "Listen to me, she's dangerous. She'll use you emotions against you if you get near her."

"I trusted you," she breathed, her lip trembling, eyes swimming. "I swore myself to you and you lied to me." Trick looked at the floor, eyes squeezed shut. "Do you know how many years I've spent trying to atone for not being there? How many nights I spent awake, praying she would find a way to forgive me for not being with her?" The look on her face was indescribable. I'd only seen it once before, when Lauren showed me the pictures from the manticore attack. It was the same expression I had when Kenzi was holding me on the stairs.

It was a look that made me squeeze Lauren's hand tighter.

"Amelia, everything I kept from you was to protect you."

"You lied to me," she growled at him, coming apart at the seams, "after centuries of my servitude, of my unwavering loyalty, you betrayed me." I swallowed hard, I'd never seen this woman show an ounce of weakness. Of instability.

"You're not seeing this rationally!" Trick tried to reason. "You're letting your feelings cloud your judgment. I kept this from you to protect you! You and your family! Do you remember the last time you and her were together? Remember what she did?"

Amelia's eyes darkened and her jaw set. The Morigan still said nothing, but there was a glint in her eyes verging on murderous. I'd never seen such intense, pure emotion from her, not without some kind of flippant or sarcastic edge to it.

"Besides, you found happiness, I thought..." he sighed "I though I was giving you mercy by letting you believe she was gone."

"Who needs your mercy, huh?" Her elegant frame began to shake. "If I wanted mercy, I would have stayed sided with the light."

"I'm sorry-"

"Fuck you," she snarled, her eyes turning the striking amber that made Trick step back. Her entire body shook, hands clenched by her sides. "Now get the _fuck _out of this compound or _you'll _be the one who needs protecting."

"Amelia-"

"You heard her, Frodo," the Morigan finally piped up, arms crossed over her chest. "Beat it. I'm so over being cooperative."

Trick looked at her a moment longer before turning to me, his eyes pools of remorse and regret.

"Come, we have to go."

"But Lauren-"

"She's safe with me, Succubus," Amelia said, eyes still sharp, "just get him out of here before something happens that we'll all regret." I rose to my feet, looking down at the doctor on the cot. I bent down and pressed my lips to hers, ignoring the awkward lump from the air tube. I held her face firmly in my hands as if it were the last time I'd see her.

"I'll come back for you, Lauren. I won't let them hurt you. Just don't get too rowdy while I'm gone, okay?" I breathed in her scent, not oblivious to the fact that it was laced with the sharp bite of antiseptic. I straightened up again, meeting Amelia's eyes, noting the small glimmer of empathy within their depths.

I followed Trick out.

The iron door slammed closed behind us.

**Graaah. My brain. It hurts.**

**Anyway, some of you may not be amused with what's coming, but as I was writing this chapter I started to wonder more about how Amelia is tangled up in Trick's family. I hadn't intended for it at all but it seemed the more I wrote the more tension and history bubbled under the surface. Then I got an idea and I kind of hinted at it in this chapter and my angsty teenage brain is excited about it. So future chapters will probably touch on what happened between Amelia and Trick and Aife because it does tie into Bo a little bit and could have an impact on the future which I didn't think of until now.**

**I'm not going to write a witty review line because "ain't nobody got time for that."**


	12. The Deal

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

Lauren sat in the endless white of her coma. It was peaceful there. Quiet. She hadn't had so much of a worry, though she knew a war was waging just outside this world. She didn't feel anything. Not regret, guilt, worry. Just tired.

So very tired.

But here she could sleep. She had an escape. She wasn't responsible for anything here. She wasn't a freak here. She was human. Normal. She wasn't fighting anything here. She closed her eyes and could hear her mother singing to her a lullaby, as she had when Lauren was a little girl.

It was peaceful there.

Quiet.

She drew in a long breath and held it, feeling her lungs and ribs expand. She felt her body respond and relax as she let the breath out in a slow, steady stream. She laid down on the ground, or the ground her brain had created to give her a sense of familiarity. Her mind was clear. So clear for the first time in years. There was no one here she had to worry about or take care of. No one here who wanted something from her. And still, she started to cry.

It was peaceful there.

Quiet.

She laid her arm over her eyes as the sobs shook her body. She'd been fighting for over a year. Fighting hard for the people she loved. The people she was responsible for. The people who had, time and time again, turned on her or let her down. She didn't want to think about that right now. Now, she wanted to sleep.

She wanted to give up the fight.

"Hello, Lauren" a voice echoed around the open place. Lauren uncovered her eyes to find the Old One looking down at her, dressed all in black. It was like an ink drop on a sheet of blank paper. "I haven't been able to find you. Our agreement was to be settled three days ago, remember?" her voice was soft, a gentle as a butterfly's touch. Lauren furrowed her brows; had she really been out that long?

"I'm sorry," Lauren whispered, wiping her face. She couldn't summon the strength to insult the monster. "I couldn't-"

"I know," the being said, still just as gentle. "I know." It kneeled down by her head and brushed the strands of hair from her face. Lauren closed her eyes. "And I forgive you."

"Really?" It nodded.

"Of course. What happened, the coma, it's not your fault. You couldn't prevent what others did. But now is the time to decide, darling." the Old One whispered, capturing the wetness from Lauren's cheek with its finger tips. "It's time to make your choice." Lauren screwed her eyes shut, forcing out the tears that had settled there. She pulled in a choppy breath and laid her hand over her forehead.

"I'm so tired," she sobbed, followed by another shaky breath. "I can't do this anymore. I can't protect them anymore. I'm not strong enough."

"Shhh," the old one cooed, pushing the hair from Lauren's face. "It's alright. I'm here now. I'm strong enough for the both of us. What Harbinger forced on you wasn't fair. What it made you do, what it did to your body was never something you were prepared to deal with. It was wrong."

"I don't sleep," Lauren whimpered, "I can't sleep. I can't eat. I'm always fighting." She looked up at the Old One, her eyes stinging, "I don't want to fight anymore."

"I know, Lauren, I know. But you don't have to fight anymore. You can let it go and give in to me. I'll take your hurt away. I'll make it easy to breathe again." Lauren closed her eyes, drawing shaky breaths.

"Do it."

The Old One trailed its finger tips over Lauren's forehead. "Relax, Lauren, let me in." Its lips closed over the doctor's in a slow kiss. As far as Lauren was concerned, in that moment, it wasn't an ancient being kissing her. It was Bo, her love, her everything, that sent a jolt through her as a flash of white exploded behind her eyelids.

+/+\+

In the dungeon where Lauren was kept, the loud yowls and helps of the prisoners rang thick through the air like smoke. Lauren remained motionless on the cot as A nurse checked her vitals, ensuring everything was as it had been the last time she was here. She glared down at the Half, imagining all the ways she could sabotage the monster's life support so it look like a short circuit that would cause its demise. But she shook the thought away as quickly as it had come. The Morigan wouldn't care if it was an accident; she would have the entire medical staff killed for failing anyway. Except for the precious Healer.

The Nurses blood boiled.

The stupid wolf thought she was so special. The Nurse knew better. She had only been a child when the wolf switched sides, but she remembered. The Healer was nothing but a traitor. She would turn her back on the dark soon enough, and when she did, the Nurses only prayed she was there to see the punishment that would be inflicted.

A dark flash drew her attention from the heart monitor. She looked at the cot and gasped, stumbling back.

It was gone.

The Half was gone.

How was that even possible!?

She whirled around only for a strong hand to clamp around her neck. "My, my," the beast tsked, "so much hatred for someone who never did anything to you." The restraints were still clamped on its body, the chains singing like wind chimes as it moved.

It had broken through dwarven chains.

"H-how?" the Nurse choked out around the skilled fingers. The Half chuckled. "You're body should have-"

"Killed itself before I ever got out? You Fae think you know everything, don't you?"

"The drugs...the chains-!"

"Please, drugs that can knock out a pathetic human aren't _nearly _potent enough to make me groggy. As for the chains...who do you think taught the Dwarves to make them in the first place?"

"You're...you're not human?" the being laughed.

"Well, here's the thing, you know that doctor you were thinking such terrible things about? The human? She's not here anymore." The eyes in front of the Nurses swirled a volatile mix of gold and red, whirlpools of hell. "And I'm a whole lot less tolerant of bullshit." With a simple flick of its wrist, the Old One sent the Nurse spiralling into the wall, her neck crunching on impact.

The Old One paused, pulling the IV needles from its arms and dropping them to the ground. It stretched, pulling the metal cuffs from its wings with ease. It inhaled deeply and shook itself. Then, it walked towards the heavy metal door and with an easy smack sent the two ton barrier shooting down the long corridor like it had flicked a price of cardboard. The loud hall fell silent instantly.

"What the-!" the guard spun, just in time to catch a quill right between the eyes. The Old One looked out at the cells, the caged fae.

"Listen up, you wastes of skin," it called, walking decidedly down the hall, "I have a proposition for all of you," she smiled, "and it's one I think you'll be more than willing to take me up on."

**For ****everyone who reads this who also reads any other FanFiction I write, I'm sorry I haven't updated anything but this for forever, I just seem to be on a roll. I promise I will spread the love soon enough.**


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